(CNN) – A police source said hundreds of prisoners escaped from Haiti's national prison in the capital Port-au-Prince after clashes broke out on Saturday.
In a post about them being successful: “We’ll be done. “No one will be saved in the capital because there will now be 3,000 more bandits,” the statement said.
Multiple security sources in Port-au-Prince told CNN that the recent surge in violence, which began Thursday and targeted police stations, the international airport and the national prison, was unprecedented in recent years.
On Friday, Haitian gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, also known as “Barbecue,” said he would continue his attempt to overthrow Prime Minister Ariel Henry.
Police officers confront a gang during a protest against Prime Minister Ariel Henry's government in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, March 1, 2024. Ralph Tedy Erol/Portal
“We call on the Haitian National Police and the army to live up to their responsibilities and arrest Ariel Henry. Again, the population is not our enemy; Armed groups are not our enemy. Arrest Ariel Henry for liberating the country,” Cherizier said, adding: “With these weapons we will liberate the country and these weapons will change the country.”
Cherizier is a former police officer who leads a gang alliance. There is a threat of sanctions from both the United Nations and the US Treasury Department.
Public frustration that had been building against Henry over his inability to stop the unrest boiled over after he failed to resign last month, citing escalating violence.
In an earlier agreement, he had committed to holding elections and transferring power by February 7.
Protesters in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on March 1, 2024. Ralph Tedy Erol/Portal
Caribbean leaders said on Wednesday that Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry had agreed to hold a general election no later than August 31, 2025.
The latest fighting, which broke out on Thursday, came as Henry visited Kenya to clarify details with President William Ruto about the expected deployment of a multinational security assistance mission to Haiti.
Speaking to CNN, a Haitian police source said gangs had attacked several police stations across the city since Thursday, killing at least four people and setting some police stations on fire.
Meanwhile, shootings near the airport on Thursday forced airlines to suspend flights.
The U.S. Embassy in Haiti issued a security alert Friday, warning of gunfire and traffic disruptions near domestic and international terminals and in surrounding areas, including a hotel and the Central Directorate of Criminal Investigation.
Haiti has been hit by a wave of unrest and gang violence in recent years.
Warring gangs control much of Port-au-Prince and cut off important supply lines to the rest of the country. Gang members have also terrorized metropolitan populations, forcing more than 300,000 people to flee their homes amid a wave of indiscriminate killings, kidnappings, arson and rape.
Around 1,100 people were killed, wounded or kidnapped in January alone, in what the United Nations described as the most violent month in two years.