Five armed environmentalists have been killed in a clash with police near Haiti's capital Port-au-Prince, as violent protests demanding the ouster of Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry paralyze the country.
Haiti has been in turmoil since Monday, with thousands of people in the city and other parts of the country demanding Prime Minister Henry's resignation in line with a 2022 political agreement.
Police officials said the attack occurred after five employees of the National Agency for Protected Areas (BSAP), the government's armed wing that is currently in open rebellion, refused to drop their weapons and fired in the direction of police. It was announced on Wednesday that he had been shot. Three other members of the agency were also arrested.
According to the agreement signed in December 2022 following the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse a year ago, Mr Henry will hold elections and hand over power to newly elected officials on February 7, 2024. It was planned.
But Henry remains in power, with aides saying he intends to form a government of national unity.
The Western Hemisphere's poorest country has been in turmoil for years, with armed groups seizing parts of Haiti and unleashing brutal violence, leaving the economy and public health system in shambles.
Moïse's assassination in 2021 plunged the country into further turmoil. No elections have been held since 2016, and the presidential position remains vacant.
The protest was called for by several opposition parties, and Environment Agency officials also participated.
According to local media, a police station in the northeastern province of Huanaminte was attacked on Tuesday night. Starting Monday, major roads and schools across the country were closed.
The Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, said on Wednesday it was fortifying its borders following the violence.