American airline "Spirit Airlines" announced on Monday that one of its planes was shot at during the flight to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and was forced to make an emergency landing in the Dominican Republic. According to the company, there was a report of "minor injuries."
Flight 951, which departed from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was heading to Santiago, where upon landing it was discovered that "traces of gunfire were found, consistent with gunfire from a firearm," as noted by the American low-cost airline that operates flights to this troubled Caribbean country, suffering from gangs.
The company stated that it will suspend its flights to this country "until a deeper assessment of the situation". The Miami Herald reported that the plane had sustained damage during landing at Port-au-Prince airport.
In a statement, "Spirit Airlines" said: "One of the crew members reported minor injuries," stating that "the medical team assessed his condition," and that none of the passengers were injured. The plane was prohibited from taking off, and another plane was suggested to return passengers back to Fort Lauderdale later.
"American Airlines" also suspended its flights from Miami to Port-au-Prince until Thursday. These actions were taken after Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for political factions in the country to "stop their hostilities" and "work together" with the new Prime Minister.
Haiti has suffered from political, economic, social, and natural disasters for many years. The situation escalated at the end of February, when armed gangs conducted coordinated attacks on police stations, prisons, and government buildings in an attempt to overthrow former Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who was appointed a few days before the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021.
The interests of many politicians intersect with the interests of gangs in Haiti. After several weeks of competition for control by various ministries, the acting president decided to remove Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who had been appointed in June in an attempt to ensure stability. He is to be replaced by businessman Alex Didié Festus Émile.
