Haiti names new prime minister in effort to quell gang violence

April 30 (UPI) -- In an effort to quell gang violence, Haiti's transitional council Tuesday named former youth and sports minister Fritz Belizaire as the Caribbean nation's new prime minister and Edward Leblanc Fils as its president.

The seven-member council, which was sworn in last week to restore security and pave the way for elections, chose Belizaire on Tuesday during a ceremony in Haiti's capital Port-au-Prince.

The council's leadership choice comes after Prime Minister Ariel Henry officially resigned last week to clear the way for a new government. Henry had been in self-exile in Puerto Rico after his plane was denied entry in February into the Dominican Republic. Finance Minister Michel Patrick Boisvert took over as interim prime minister.

Haiti's government has been without a leader since 2021, when President Jovenel Moise was assassinated. Henry became the de facto president, despite suspicions that he may have been involved in Moise's death.

Belizaire will now run the government until a new president is elected in February 2026. The transitional council will be tasked with appointing a new cabinet and coordinating a multinational security force to help reclaim the capital, as Haiti's gangs also demand representation.

Gang violence has escalated across the island nation since the start of the year. The non-profit ACAPS humanitarian aid agency estimates more than 80% of Haiti and more than 60% of the capital is controlled by gangs.

Thousands of prisoners have escaped from the country's two largest prisons as gangs staged shooting attacks at Haiti's main airport and vandalized hospitals and food supplies.

According to the United Nations, nearly 5 million people in Haiti are suffering from acute food insecurity.

Last year, the U.S. State Department warned Americans to avoid travel to Haiti.