Haiti’s main airport temporarily shut down Monday as gangs attempted to seize control, the U.S. embassy reported, the same day a new interim prime minister was expected to take over the direction of a country facing a surge of violence.
Firefights between gangs and police broke out in parts of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, with heavily armed officers ducking behind walls as civilians ran in terror. In other upper class neighborhoods, gangs set fire to homes.
The United States Embassy in Haiti issued a travel warning saying that the city’s airport was shut down due to “gang-led efforts to block travel to and from Port-au-Prince which may include armed violence, and disruptions to roads, ports, and airports.”
It comes after reports that gangs shot at a Spirit airline flight and photos shared with the Associated Press of bullet holes in the plane, though The Associated Press was not able to immediately confirm the incident with authorities.
Spirit Airlines said in a statement to Reuters that a plane had been damaged after being struck by gunfire and taken out of commission upon landing in the northern Dominican city of Santiago. A flight attendant was injured in the incident, but no passengers were hurt, the airline said.
The turmoil comes a day after a council meant to reestablish democratic order in the Caribbean nation fired the interim prime minister Garry Conille, who was at odds with the council, replacing him with businessman Alix Didier Fils-Aimé. The council has been marked by infighting and three members were recently accused of corruption.
—with files from Reuters