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'The majority of Haitians seek international force'

Haiti’s ambassador to the United States says 90% of Haitians support international assistance

Now is not the time for the world to turn away from Haiti, says UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed who has called for international solidarity and support as the country continues to confront gang violence, political instability and a deadly cholera outbreak.

Addressing the Security Council, Ms. Mohammed underlined the UN Secretary-General’s call for support to the Haitian National Police, as set out in a letter to ambassadors in October. She said: “I urge every country with the capacity to do so to give urgent consideration to the Haitian Government’s request for an international specialised armed force to help restore security and alleviate the humanitarian crisis.â€

Bocchit Edmond is the ambassador of Haiti to the United States. He told Newsday: “If you go to Haiti now to meet the people on the street, 90 percent of them will tell you they are for international assistance because we realise our national police alone can not do the job. The gangs are more powerful. Their fire power is far superior than the national police and from January to now, we have lost more than 60 police officers…If we don’t do something, these guys will take over the entire country and then it’s going to be too late.â€

(Picture: Shows police searching the Carrefour Feuille neighbourhood of Port-au-Prince on November 10th 2022 during an attack by armed gangs. Credit: Richard Pierrin / AFP via Getty Images.)

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