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What We Know About the Assassination of Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse - ABC News

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What we know about the assassination of Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse - ABC News [abc.net.au]:

Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world, has been thrown into deeper political strife after disguised gunmen burst into the home of President Jovenel Moïse and killed him.

At the time of his death last night, the President had been clinging to power despite claims from opposition figures that his term had expired.

What's more, the country's chief justice died of COVID-19 last month, and the country has been without a formal prime minister since April.

The interim prime minister was set to be replaced next week, adding to the uncertainty that now grips the Caribbean nation.

What do we know about the assassination?

Mr Moïse was killed by a group of armed attackers who entered his private residence in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince in a night-time raid.

Video published by the Miami Herald showed an American-accented voice yelling over loudspeaker "DEA operation, everybody back up and stay down" outside the presidential residence.

Haiti's ambassador to the United States, Bocchit Edmond, said the attackers entered the complex under the ruse they were agents for the US Drug Enforcement Administration.

Once inside, the armed gunmen killed Mr Moïse, while his wife was injured.

She has now been transported to the US for treatment.

Interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph said the heavily armed gunmen were either speaking Spanish or English during the deadly raid.

In a televised statement, the director-general of Haiti's national police said four "mercenaries" had been killed and two more taken into custody during an operation in Port-au-Prince following the assassination.

But it's not clear what motivated the attack on his life.

Who was Jovenel Moïse, the President of Haiti?

Mr Moïse was sworn in as President of Haiti in February 2017, but exactly when his term would have ended is behind part of the country's strife.

He was first elected in 2015 in a vote that had to be re-run the following year due to fraud concerns.

His opponents claimed his term expired five years after the date he would have been sworn in under the first election, while he maintained his term would not end until February 2022.

The 53-year-old former businessman was swept to power on pledges to strengthen institutions, fight corruption and bring more investment and jobs to Haiti.

But togetherness never arrived, and his administration was plagued by massive protests from the start. Even his initial election in 2015 was annulled, forcing a re-do that he also won.

Critics accused him of growing increasingly authoritarian.

He had been ruling by decree for more than a year after dissolving a majority of Parliament in January 2020 amid a delay in legislative elections.

Political strife likely to follow Moïse's death

The attack on Mr Moïse's life comes at a particularly fractious period for the country.

The Haitian Times reported the chief justice of the country's supreme court would be next in line in the presidential line of succession.

However, the last person to hold that post, Rene Sylvestre, died of COVID-19 just weeks ago.

Mr Joseph was about to be booted from the interim prime ministership, but now says he is in charge of the country.

Though the calm held in the hours after the assassination, many now fear Haiti could tip further into violence.

"How much worse can hell get?" Haiti expert Irwin Stotzky, from the University of Miami law school.

"Haiti faces even more violence and death and failure as a democratic nation than ever before, which is hard to imagine given its recent and chaotic history."

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

Posted 42 minutes ago42 minutes agoShare

'They will be killed or captured': Two alleged assassins' of Haitian president in custody, four fatally shot by police [abc.net.au] Gunmen disguised as US DEA agents assassinated Haitian President, ambassador says [abc.net.au] 'They will be killed or captured': Two alleged assassins' of Haitian president in custody, four fatally shot by police [abc.net.au] Gunmen disguised as US DEA agents assassinated Haitian President, ambassador says [abc.net.au] More on:

Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world, has been thrown into deeper political strife after disguised gunmen burst into the home of President Jovenel Moïse and killed him.

At the time of his death last night, the President had been clinging to power despite claims from opposition figures that his term had expired.

What's more, the country's chief justice died of COVID-19 last month, and the country has been without a formal prime minister since April.

The interim prime minister was set to be replaced next week, adding to the uncertainty that now grips the Caribbean nation.

What do we know about the assassination?

Mr Moïse was killed by a group of armed attackers who entered his private residence in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince in a night-time raid.

Video published by the Miami Herald showed an American-accented voice yelling over loudspeaker "DEA operation, everybody back up and stay down" outside the presidential residence.

Haiti's ambassador to the United States, Bocchit Edmond, said the attackers entered the complex under the ruse they were agents for the US Drug Enforcement Administration.

Once inside, the armed gunmen killed Mr Moïse, while his wife was injured.

She has now been transported to the US for treatment.

Interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph said the heavily armed gunmen were either speaking Spanish or English during the deadly raid.

In a televised statement, the director-general of Haiti's national police said four "mercenaries" had been killed and two more taken into custody during an operation in Port-au-Prince following the assassination.

But it's not clear what motivated the attack on his life.

Who was Jovenel Moïse, the President of Haiti?

Mr Moïse was sworn in as President of Haiti in February 2017, but exactly when his term would have ended is behind part of the country's strife.

He was first elected in 2015 in a vote that had to be re-run the following year due to fraud concerns.

His opponents claimed his term expired five years after the date he would have been sworn in under the first election, while he maintained his term would not end until February 2022.

The 53-year-old former businessman was swept to power on pledges to strengthen institutions, fight corruption and bring more investment and jobs to Haiti.

But togetherness never arrived, and his administration was plagued by massive protests from the start. Even his initial election in 2015 was annulled, forcing a re-do that he also won.

Critics accused him of growing increasingly authoritarian.

He had been ruling by decree for more than a year after dissolving a majority of Parliament in January 2020 amid a delay in legislative elections.

Political strife likely to follow Moïse's death

The attack on Mr Moïse's life comes at a particularly fractious period for the country.

The Haitian Times reported the chief justice of the country's supreme court would be next in line in the presidential line of succession.

However, the last person to hold that post, Rene Sylvestre, died of COVID-19 just weeks ago.

Mr Joseph was about to be booted from the interim prime ministership, but now says he is in charge of the country.

Though the calm held in the hours after the assassination, many now fear Haiti could tip further into violence.

"How much worse can hell get?" Haiti expert Irwin Stotzky, from the University of Miami law school.

"Haiti faces even more violence and death and failure as a democratic nation than ever before, which is hard to imagine given its recent and chaotic history."

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

ABC/wires

Posted 42 minutes ago42 minutes agoShare

'They will be killed or captured': Two alleged assassins' of Haitian president in custody, four fatally shot by police [abc.net.au] Gunmen disguised as US DEA agents assassinated Haitian President, ambassador says [abc.net.au] 'They will be killed or captured': Two alleged assassins' of Haitian president in custody, four fatally shot by police [abc.net.au] Gunmen disguised as US DEA agents assassinated Haitian President, ambassador says [abc.net.au] More on:

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