Haiti: PM Ariel Henry barred from leaving country

Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry has been barred from leaving the country.

The move comes amid an investigation into his alleged role in the assassination of Haiti’s President Jovenel Moïse.

Henry is being asked to explain his links with Joseph Badio, a key suspect in the assassination and also an official of the Justice ministry.

Prosecutors say they were involved in multiple phone calls just a few hours after the assassination.

Haiti’s President was killed on July 07 after gunmen stormed his residence.

Soon after the assassination, Haiti was struck with a massive earthquake that gave rise to significant political turmoil and induced a humanitarian crisis.

As Haitians are unhappy with their government’s COVID response and deteriorating economic conditions, rise in political uncertainty would not only mean a new government but a completely new form of it.

Henry had already removed and replaced the Chief Prosecutor of the country saying he was committing serious administrative offences, and experts familiar with Haiti’s law state it isn’t within the Prime Minister’s jurisdiction to sack a prosecutor.

Police have held 44 people in custody, including over 15 retired members of the Colombian military.

All the alleged suspects held are believed to be part of the elaborate plan behind the assassination.

As months go by, police are speeding up arrests in order to find out who was behind the entire plot.

Prime Minister Henry has denied the allegations and called them an attempt to spread uncertainty.