(Port-au-Prince) A first contingent of Kenyan police arrived Tuesday in Port-au-Prince, as part of an international mission aimed at restoring security in Haiti, plagued by gang violence, noted the ‘AFP.
A plane from the national airline Kenya Airways landed shortly before 10 a.m. (Eastern time) at the Haitian capital’s airport with this first contingent of police on board.
The plane took off from Nairobi on Monday evening after Kenyan President William Ruto visited the police officers before their departure.
“This mission is one of the most urgent, important and historic in the history of global solidarity,” declared the head of state during a closed-door ceremony, according to comments reported by the presidential office.
Kenya has proposed sending a thousand police officers to Haiti for the Multinational Security Support Mission (MMAS), planned for an initial duration of one year, and to which Bangladesh, Benin, Chad, the Bahamas and Barbados.
The deployment of this force was approved by a UN Security Council resolution in October, but it has sparked strong criticism in Kenya.
Haiti has suffered from chronic political instability for decades and has been facing a resurgence of gang violence in recent months, which control 80% of the capital Port-au-Prince, coupled with a humanitarian crisis.