Haiti’s Prime Minister Removed from Office After Just Six Months.

Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille has been dismissed by the country’s ruling council, less than six months after his appointment. An executive order, signed by eight of the council’s nine members, announced businessman and former Senate candidate Alix Didier Fils-Aime as Conille’s successor.

Conille, a former United Nations official, was tasked with leading Haiti through an escalating, gang-driven security crisis and was anticipated to facilitate the country’s first presidential elections since 2016. He condemned his removal as illegal in a letter seen by Reuters, expressing “serious concerns” for Haiti’s future.

Currently, Haiti has no president or parliament, and according to its constitution, only parliament has the authority to remove a prime minister.

Conille assumed office on June 3. “This resolution, enacted outside of any legal and constitutional framework, raises significant concerns about its legitimacy,” he wrote in the letter.

The Transitional Presidential Council (TPC) was formed in April after Conille’s predecessor, Ariel Henry, was forced out by gangs that had gained control over parts of Port-au-Prince. After Henry left Haiti for a summit in Guyana on February 25, 2024, gangs seized the capital’s international airport, barring his return.

The TPC’s mission has been to restore democratic order in Haiti, where violence remains widespread.

Since January, over 3,600 people have lost their lives in the violence, and more than 500,000 have been displaced, according to the United Nations, which describes Haiti as one of the world’s poorest nations.

UN data indicates that two million Haitians face emergency levels of hunger, with nearly half the population struggling with food insecurity.

One prominent gang leader, Jimmy Chérizier—also known as Barbecue—has suggested he might consider peace if armed groups are included in negotiations to form a new government.

Haiti’s last presidential election was in 2016, electing Jovenel Moïse of the Tèt Kale party. Since his assassination in July 2021, the presidency has been vacant, allowing gangs to expand control over much of the country, rendering some areas effectively lawless.

In recent efforts to curb violence, hundreds of police officers from Kenya were deployed to Haiti last month, with more expected to arrive in November.