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Haitian forces working with police sent from Kenya have launched a joint operation to oust criminal gangs from one of the roughest neighborhoods of Haiti's capital, Prime Minister Garry Conille said Wednesday.
Conille spoke at a hospital in Port-au-Prince where three Haitian policemen were recuperating after being injured in a shootout Tuesday during the joint operation in the impoverished and gang-controlled neighborhood of Bel Air.
“I am tired of seeing police officers beings shot. I am tired of going to police officers’ funerals. We must solve this insecurity problem,” Conille said.
Conille did not provide further details of the operation and did not take questions during his brief news conference, but he called on Haitians to cooperate with police and share information to help reduce crime.
More than 3,200 killings have been reported in Haiti from January to May. Gangs that control 80% of Port-au-Prince have left more than half a million people homeless in recent years as they fight to control more territory.
“It’s not going to be quick,” Conille said. “We must be patient.”
Earlier in the day, a police union reported that a female officer was killed while going to work on Wednesday, with more than a dozen bullet holes found in her windshield. Michelle Nathanielle Megine is one of roughly two dozen officers killed so far this year.
A U.N.-backed mission led by Kenya has sent some 400 police officers to Haiti so far to help quell gang violence. Police and soldiers from countries including Benin, Chad and Jamaica also are expected to arrive in coming months for a total of 2,500 foreign personnel.
