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Businessman Alix Didier Fils-Aime was sworn in as Haiti’s new prime minister on Monday as a gun attack on a passenger jet at the capital’s airport underscored the utter breakdown in law and order in the Caribbean country.
Fils-Aime replaced outgoing premier Garry Conille, who was appointed in May but became embroiled in a power struggle with the unelected transitional council tasked with stabilizing the crisis-wracked nation.
“We have a transition with lots of work to do: the first essential job, which is a condition for success, is restoring security,” Fils-Aime said in his first remarks.
He said he was aware of Haiti’s “difficult circumstances” but promised to put “all of my energy, my skills and my patriotism at the service of the national cause.”
The challenges awaiting him are daunting, as evidenced by the drama in the skies over the capital city.
Low-cost American carrier Spirit Airlines said that a flight from Florida was hit by gunfire while trying to land at Port-au-Prince on Monday and had to be diverted to the neighboring Dominican Republic.
One flight attendant suffered minor injuries and was being evaluated by medical staff, the airline said in a statement, while images posted online appeared to show several bullet holes inside the cabin.
No passengers were hurt.
The airport in Port-au-Prince has grounded all commercial flights, the Miami Herald reported, while American Airlines announced it was suspending its service between Miami and the Haitian capital until Thursday.
