Haiti Receives Canada's Assessment Mission Team Amid Security Crisis in Nation

Haiti has received Canada's assessment mission team amid its growing security crisis. It happened as Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly met with her U.S. counterpart, State Secretary Antony Blinken, in Ottawa.

Al Jazeera News reported that the Canadian foreign affairs department said a government delegation was in Haiti to "consult with stakeholders on options to support Haitians" in addressing the humanitarian and security crises.

The assessment mission team will also review how Canada can "contribute to the international response" in the Caribbean nation.

Joly said in a statement that Canada "will not remain idle while gangs and those who support them terrorize Haitian citizens." She also promised that Canada will continue to support law-abiding Haitians.

Meanwhile, Blinken said the United States and Canada will work together to "cut the insecurity knot" that has paved the way for gangs to make a humanitarian crisis in Haiti.

However, Blinken and Joly have not committed their country to lead a military force to Haiti.

United States' Efforts in Haiti

ABC News Go noted that Canada and the United States have sent tanks to Haiti. The armored vehicles were said to be bought by Haiti's government.

The U.S. State Department did not provide further details on the supplies flown on military aircraft to Port-au-Prince but said that the equipment will help Haiti's National Police in their fight against criminal actors.

The equipment arrived more than a month after one of Haiti's most powerful gangs surrounded a fuel terminal and ordered the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, as reported by Associated Press News report.

People protesting have also blocked roads in major cities to rally against the sharp increase in fuel prices after Henry announced in early September that his administration could no longer afford to subsidize fuel.

U.N. on the Haiti Security Crisis

The U.N. Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution in October demanding the immediate ending of violence and criminal activity in Haiti.

The U.N. has also imposed sanctions on individuals and groups threatening peace and stability in the Western Hemisphere nation, starting with one of its powerful gang leaders.

U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield noted after the resolution's approval that they are sending a clear message "to the bad actors that are holding Haiti hostage," according to a PBS News report.

Mexico, with the U.S., drafted a 10-page resolution and delayed the vote so they could revise the text to gain more support.

The resolution identified one Haitian named Jimmy "Barbecue" Cherizier. His gang has blocked a key fuel terminal, which prompted severe shortages in the country.

Cherizier was also known to be a former police officer leading an alliance of gangs known as the G9 Family and Allies. He will now face a travel ban, asset freeze, and arms embargo.

The instability in the country started last year when President Jovenel Moise was assassinated.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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