Translated material
Armed men shot people at the opening of a hospital
A group of armed men opened fire on people gathered for the opening of Haiti's largest public hospital. One journalist and one policeman were killed, seven more local media workers and two police officers were injured, the British The Guardian reported , citing the Haitian radio station Télé Métronome and Reuters.
The opening of the hospital in the center of the country's capital Port-au-Prince was supposed to take place in the morning, local authorities invited journalists to 8:00 am local time. People were waiting for a press conference by the new Minister of Health Dakenson Lorte Blem, but at about 11:00 the shooting began.
Johnson “Iso” Andre, considered the most powerful leader of the Viv Ansanm gang coalition, claimed responsibility for the attack. He posted a video of people being shot on social networks. The footage of the video shows that a group of reporters is in the hospital building, and at least three people are lying on the floor, apparently wounded, writes The Guardian.
The video says the gang coalition did not give permission for the hospital to open. The video could not be verified, the newspaper clarified.
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A new health minister was appointed at the end of November following a cabinet reshuffle that removed Prime Minister Harry Conil after only six months in the post. His predecessor, Prime Minister Ariel Henry, was removed from power after a surge in gangland attacks in March, The Guardian writes.
The country's largest hospital, the State University of Haiti General Hospital, was closed at the same time, in March. The authorities promised to reopen the hospital on December 24.
Bandit attacks have brought Haiti's health system to the brink of collapse, writes The Guardian. In the capital of the country, medical facilities and pharmacies are being looted, set on fire and destroyed, which has already led to an increase in the number of patients in need of help and a shortage of medicines. Viv Ansanm now effectively controls most of Port-au-Prince, the newspaper reported.
Haiti's health system is further challenged by the rainy season, which increases the risk of the spread of water-borne diseases. Poor conditions in camps and other temporary settlements have increased the risk of diseases such as cholera. According to Unicef, there are more than 84,000 cases of the disease in the country.
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The Presidential Council said on Facebook on December 24 that the attack on the hospital, an “act of violence” by Viv Ansanm, “will not remain without consequences.” “We express our sympathies to the families of the victims, the Haitian National Police and all journalistic associations,” officials wrote.
Haiti has been without a president since 2021, after the last head of state, Jovenel Moïse, was assassinated. The country is governed by a “transitional presidential council” and a government controlled by it. In March, gangs tried to seize the empty presidential palace, and clashes with police and the army continued for several days throughout the capital.
In December, one of the gangs carried out a massacre of elderly residents in Port-au-Prince, accusing them of witchcraft and “causing harm” to the son of the bandit leader. The leader's son died after turning to voodoo priests. UN officials said the massacre killed 184 people.
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