International
Kenyan President announces sending another 600 soldiers to help Haiti’s security
The President of Kenya, William Ruto, announced this Saturday the arrival of another 600 troops from his country to join the Multinational Security Support Mission (MMSS), which, under the leadership of his nation, began deploying three months ago in impoverished Haiti to help the Police face the bloody armed gangs.
Ruto arrived this Saturday at the airport of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, where he was received by the president of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT), Edgard Leblanc Fils; the director of the National Police, Normil Rameau; and Ketleen Florestal, interim prime minister in the absence of Garry Conille, who traveled to New York to participate in the UN General Assembly, where the Kenyan president will travel after this Saturday’s visit to Haiti.
The Kenyan leader declared that his visit to Haiti had two objectives: the first to meet and share ideas with the Haitian authorities, and the second to visit the base of the security support mission in Haiti, where, as he said in a press conference with Leblanc Fils, he saw “a lot of progress” after the deployment of the mission, which costs the approval of the UN.
Ruto admitted that many people were critical and pessimistic about the mission, approved in October 2023 in response to the request made a year earlier by the Haitian authorities to eradicate the violence of armed gangs.
And that spirit of “dout, criticism and pessimism” still persists because the mission should already have 2,500 agents, but currently there are only 400 Kenyans.
With the arrival of these, he said, there is much more security at the airport, the National Palace, the State University Hospital of Haiti, the Police Academy and also the ports.
“Now we are working to reopen the roads in order to open the country a little more,” said the Kenyan ruler, who said that the spirit of “skepticism, doubts and criticism” is beginning to decrease.
However, he maintained that the force needs the resources and equipment to guarantee security in the country.
“The troops we have in Haiti are not enough. We should have 2,500 men and women in this force. We only have 400. We also have logistical problems. We lack resources. We don’t have enough tools to continue the work,” he said.
But “there is good news. Many more countries are beginning to commit to helping Haiti. There will be a deployment of 20 other countries that have committed to sending people to join the multinational force.”
Kenya will send another 300 people in October, and the same number will arrive in November, he promised.
“The job is difficult, but we are capable of doing it,” he said, pointing out that Kenya is very motivated to help Haiti.
For his part, Leblanc Fils said that the force “has begun to give results,” but that “it is necessary to strengthen the mission by increasing the number of troops and teams, so that it can achieve its objective and allow the State to resume responsibility for the country’s security after this support.”
The deployment of the MMSS began on July 25, with the arrival of 400 Kenyan police, who have subsequently been joined by soldiers from Jamaica and Belize.
The security situation has not recorded significant improvements in Haiti, while by the end of September countries such as the Bahamas, Barbados, Bangladesh, Chad, Benin and Belize are expected to send troops to the country, completing about 2,500 soldiers and police.
Last year, the violence caused, between deaths and injuries, eight thousand victims in Haiti, where criminal groups have come to control 80% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, as well as other areas of the country, according to UN figures.
In the first half of 2024, victims of violence already rose to almost 3,900, according to a report by the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (Binuh).
International
Regional mexican music mourns the death of Banda Gota de Oro singer Giovanni Vera
Regional Mexican music is mourning the death of Giovanni Vera, lead vocalist of the band Banda Gota de Oro, who was among the victims of an armed attack that occurred on Sunday, December 28, in the Mexican state of Guanajuato.
The incident took place inside a residence located in the Los Presidentes neighborhood, in the municipality of Irapuato.
According to preliminary reports, several people were gathered at the house when armed men burst in and opened fire on those present. The attack left five people dead, including the singer.
Hours after the shooting, Banda Gota de Oro confirmed Vera’s death through its official Instagram account. In one of the posts, the group expressed its grief with an emotional message: “Today, the sky is dressed for a celebration because you are singing up there. Your voice and your joy will live on forever within us.”
Messages of support and condolences from fans and fellow musicians quickly flooded social media, paying tribute to the artist and expressing solidarity with his family and bandmates.
International
One Dead, Three Injured in Shooting at Cree Nation in Saskatchewan
One person was killed and three others were injured in a shooting reported early Tuesday in the Big Island Lake Cree Nation, in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, according to local media.
Police said they were alerted to the incident in a remote area located approximately 392 kilometers northwest of the city of Saskatoon. Authorities issued a dangerous persons alert for two suspects, who were described as armed.
Saskatchewan police urged residents to seek shelter immediately, lock their doors, and avoid the area while the situation remains under investigation. Officers are working to determine whether the shooting was a targeted attack or a random act of violence.
As a precautionary measure, seven health-care facilities in the surrounding area were placed under lockdown, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said in a post on X.
International
Mexico’s President Visits Victims After Train Derailment Kills 13 in Oaxaca
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum visited on Monday the victims injured in a train accident that left 13 people dead in the southern state of Oaxaca and announced financial assistance for those affected by the derailment of the Interoceanic Train, which was inaugurated in 2023.
The train, carrying 241 passengers and nine crew members, derailed on Sunday while traveling along the Interoceanic Corridor, a major infrastructure project that connects the Pacific coast with the Gulf of Mexico across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The corridor was one of the flagship initiatives of former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration (2018–2024).
Sheinbaum visited three hospitals in the neighboring towns of Tehuantepec and Salina Cruz, where around 20 injured passengers remain hospitalized. She also went to a funeral home to accompany the families of those who lost their lives in the accident.
According to Mexico’s Navy Secretary, Raymundo Morales, the accident occurred when one of the locomotives derailed, causing all four railcars to leave the tracks.
Regional mexican music mourns the death of Banda Gota de Oro singer Giovanni Vera
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Regional mexican music mourns the death of Banda Gota de Oro singer Giovanni Vera