How Haiti became a failed state

A weak regime. A humanitarian crisis. A state run by gangs. And no credible end in sight

The US military started airlifting embassy staff out of Haiti overnight as the Caribbean island descends further into chaos. Rival gangs have joined forces to overrun the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, in an attempt to force the resignation of the acting president, Ariel Henry.

The gang leader behind the violence, Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier, has warned there will be a “civil war that will lead to genocide” if Henry does not step down.

Over the past week, Haiti’s gangs have carried out a series of coordinated attacks on prisons and police stations, breaking more than 3,800 criminals out of Haiti’s two biggest jails, while also laying siege to the country’s port and airport.

Haiti is already facing a humanitarian crisis. It is among the poorest countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, with 90% of the population living below the poverty line. And following the recent wave of violence, around 15,000 people who were already housed in internal displacement camps have been forced to le…