Only 30 Americans Evacuated From Haiti as Nearly 1,000 Seek Assistance from US Government

Haitian security personnel guard outside the U.S. Embassy in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince on April 29, 2019. (CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)

Nearly 1,000 Americans have filled out a “crisis intake form” seeking assistance to leave Haiti, the U.S. Department of State has said as the Caribbean nation continues grappling with unprecedented gang violence and political instability.

Monday’s update follows the safe evacuation of over 30 American citizens to Miami from Cap-Haïtien on a U.S. government-chartered flight on Sunday, March 17, shedding light on the deteriorating security situation in the Caribbean nation.

“It is not hyperbole to say that this is one of the most dire humanitarian situations in the world,” State Department spokesman Vendant Patel said on Monday.

The country has been under a Level Four “Do Not Travel” advisory since March 2020, with the State Department advising U.S. citizens against traveling to Haiti and urging those in the country to depart immediately via commercial or other available and safe transportation options.

Dire Humanitarian Situation

Gang violence in Haiti has ratcheted up in recent days to alarming levels, making the security situation untenable, the State Department said.

The Associated Press reported that on Monday, gangs attacked two upscale neighborhoods in Haiti’s capital early Monday in a rampage that left at least a dozen people dead in surrounding areas.

Gunmen looted homes in the communities of Laboule and Thomassin before sunrise, forcing residents to flee as some called radio stations pleading for police, the AP reported. The neighborhoods had remained largely peaceful despite a surge in violent gang attacks across the capital Port-au-Prince that began on Feb. 29.

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The recent attacks and ongoing gang violence raise doubts about the cessation of hostilities, despite Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s announcement of his impending resignation to make way for a transitional government. This political move, demanded by the gangs, has yet to quell the violence, leaving the country in a state of uncertainty and fear.

US Response and Evacuation Efforts

The State Department noted that although some Americans were evacuated, the situation remains fluid, and the number of Americans reaching out for assistance is nearing a thousand.

“This is a fluid situation” Mr. Patel explained, emphasizing the priority placed on the safety and security of American citizens.

“I am just going to say that work is ongoing and we have no higher priority than the safety and security of American citizens,” he said. “We recognize the security situation is untenable, and we’re continuing to look at what might be possible.”

Police officers patrol a neighborhood amid gang-related violence in downtown Port-au-Prince on April 25, 2023. (Richard Pierrin/AFP via Getty Images)

The political situation in Haiti further complicates the crisis, with stakeholders close to finalizing the membership of a Transitional Presidential Council (TPC) through CARICOM, a political and economic union of member states in the Caribbean.

“The announcement of this council, we believe, will help pave the way for free and fair elections and the deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission, and the TPC’s goal is to work for and improve the lives of all Haitians,” Mr. Patel said. “We’re seeing gang members do the exact opposite.”

The Challenge of Evacuation

The decision to evacuate American citizens over the weekend reflects a rapid change in the situation on the ground. Just last Thursday, State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller said they were “not actively planning for any evacuation.”

When asked what changed, Mr. Patel said with commercial transportation options now limited or nonexistent, the United States took action to ensure the safety of its citizens.

“The assessment was made … by us that the situation on the ground, both when it came to the security circumstances on the ground as well as the feasibility of commercial options, made it such that we thought it was in the interest of the American citizens who can make their way to Cap-Haïtien that such an avenue for departure be made available to them.”

Despite the evacuation of over 30 Americans, many remain in Haiti, indicating the vast scale of the crisis and the challenges ahead. The State Department continues to evaluate the demand for assistance and the overall security situation, ready to act as necessary to protect American lives.

“[W]e’re continuing to monitor the situation closely and evaluate the demand of U.S. citizens, evaluate the overall security situation, evaluate what is feasible when it comes to commercial transportation options, what is feasible for other transportation solutions,” Mr. Patel said. “So I am just going to say that that work is ongoing, and we have no higher priority than the safety and security of American citizens; that we certainly recognize the security situation is untenable, and we’re continuing to look at what might be possible.”