Ariel Henry, the prime minister of Haiti, has decided to step down after weeks of growing pressure and escalating violence in the nation.
It follows a meeting of regional leaders on Monday in Jamaica to talk about a political shift in Haiti.
Armed gangs have stopped Mr. Henry from going home, leaving him stranded in Puerto Rico.
Henry asked Haitians to maintain their composure in a video speech announcing his resignation.
“The government that I am leading will resign immediately after the installation of [a transition] council,” Henry said.
“I want to thank the Haitian people for the opportunity I had been granted. I’m asking all Haitians to remain calm and do everything they can for peace and stability to come back as fast as possible.”
Ariel Henry was left with no choice but to resign
Following the assassination of former President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021, Henry assumed leadership of the nation, ostensibly temporarily. He had repeatedly delayed elections, arguing that security needed to be restored before anything else.
He had been leading the nation without an elected president for this long, which had drawn criticism from many Haitians.
In recent days, heavily armed gangs have taken over Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, and are demanding the resignation of the prime minister, who was not elected.
A month-long state of emergency has been imposed on Port-au-Prince and the surrounding area, and the curfew has been prolonged.
When a group of gangs stormed two of Haiti’s biggest prisons and attacked police stations, Henry was in Kenya, signing an agreement to send an international security force to help combat violence.
Henry’s plane was prevented from landing at Haiti’s international airport after persistent attacks.
He was viewed as a threat to Haiti’s stability, and the Caricom group of Caribbean countries had made it clear that he would have to step down for the transition to a transitional council to start.
The intensity of the fighting in Haiti has caused the White House to reconsider its initial desire for Henry to oversee the transitional process there.
With no backing from the US State Department or his neighbors, Henry was left with no choice but to resign.
The US, which was present at the talks in Kingston on Monday, stated that although Henry has expressed a desire to return to Haiti, the security situation must improve before he can do so.
