Haiti celebrated its national holiday this Saturday, the anniversary of the proclamation of its independence from France in 1804. But the official commemorations came to an end in the city of Gonaïves, some 150 kilometers north of the capital: clashes took place between police and armed gang members. The Prime Minister, who had made the trip despite threats, had to be evacuated from the cathedral and return to Port-au-Prince without being able to make his speech. At the microphone of our correspondent Amélie Baron, Ariel Henry denounced this Monday a ” assassination attempt »Carried out against his person.
The National notes that after the events in Gonaïves this Saturday ” each side claims victory. On the one hand, there are those who believe that the arrival of Ariel Henry is a victory in itself and on the other, the armed men of Raboteau, notable support for the former senator Youri Latortue. “, Recalls the daily,” consider the Prime Minister’s flight to be their personal victory. Yet obviously everyone has lost “, valued The National. ” Starting with the population of Gonaïves, a city more divided than ever. The cynicism of the ones and the others took the top on the reason, but also on the symbolism of this independence day which was, 218 years ago, consecrated the day of freedom for the oppressed people. “.
The violence in the city of Gonaïves was not the only one in Haiti at the start of the year. And besides Frantz Duval devotes his first editorial of the year to them: ” Violence is the engine and the brake of everything », Writes the editor of the newspaper The Nouvelliste which lists for these last days deaths in clashes between armed gangs in Port-au-Prince, but also during a mutiny, repressed in blood, in the civilian prison of Croix-des-Bouquets as well as a police officer killed at Laboule. And The Nouvelliste to conclude : ” In 2022, violence opens the year. This is a bad sign, especially since neither the authorities, nor the police, nor the oppositions, nor the civil societies seem to be worried about it to the point of seeking real solutions. “.
Colombia: clashes between ELN and FARC dissidents kill at least 23
In Colombia, clashes between the ELN, the last guerrilla still active in the country, and ex-guerrilla FARC dissidents have left at least 23 dead in recent days. ” At the start of the year, the inhabitants of several rural municipalities in the department of Arauca were plunged into terror. “, writing El Tiempo : ” From the early hours of Sunday until Monday, violent clashes have taken place between FARC dissidents and ELN guerrillas in a bitter battle for control of the drug trafficking routes between Colombia and Venezuela. “.
The newspaper El Colombiano speaks this morning of a ” new war in Arauca “. According to El Espectador, ” the clashes resulted in numerous casualties among the civilian population “. In the columns of the newspaper, the Colombian Minister of Defense, Diego Molano, affirms that the violence ” started in the municipality of La Victoria, in the state of Apure in Venezuela “. Always according to El Espectador, five Venezuelan nationals are also among the dead.
The Colombian president once again pointed the finger at the Venezuelan government of Socialist President Nicolas Maduro. According to Ivan Duque, quoted by Semana, the clashes between the ELN and FARC dissidents are ” the result of the porous border “of 2,200 kilometers between the two countries and the fact that the Chavist regime allows illegal armed groups to establish themselves on Venezuelan soil “. This is not the first time that Ivan Duque has accused his Venezuelan counterpart in this way. Charges regularly rejected by the government of Caracas.
United States: stage victory of the anti-vaxes within the American army
In the United States, the Pentagon will not be able to punish the American military who refuse to be vaccinated against Covid-19 for religious reasons. ” Texas federal judge granted preliminary injunction barring the US Department of Defense from taking “any adverse action against 35 Marines who refused to be vaccinated””, Reports the New York Times. These 35 soldiers, ” whose members of the Navy Seals special force had filed a lawsuit against the Pentagon for ordering all active-duty troops to receive the vaccine. An order which, according to these soldiers, violates their religious freedoms “. For its part, the Washington post details the military argument: ” They assert their Christian beliefs that they should not accept a vaccine developed from stem cells that come from aborted embryos. », Explains the newspaper.
The Texas federal judge ruled in their favor. In his order, Reed O’Connor, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, considered that “ our nation calls on the men and women of our armed forces to serve, to suffer and to sacrifice themselves. But we don’t ask them not to put aside their citizenship and give up the very rights they have sworn to protect “. And he added: ” The Covid-19 pandemic does not offer the government any license to abrogate these freedoms. There is no Covid-19 exception to the First Amendment. And there is no military exclusion from our Constitution “.
the New York Times specifies that “ by mid-December, most servicemen on active duty had received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine. But thousands of members of the US military had asked for religious exemptions. None had been granted so far “. In response to Monday’s judgment, Republican Senator from Texas Ted Cruz exclaimed on Twitter: ” It’s a major victory! “.
Canada: Faced with meteoric spread of Omicron, several provinces tighten restrictions
While the province of Ontario ” closes all schools, restaurants and sports halls », As the newspaper reports Globe and Mail, ” the canadian armed forces will help with vaccination in Quebec “, announcement The duty. According to the daily, the army and health authorities are carrying out an assessment to decide on the locations and the number of soldiers. Their actual deployment should begin this Tuesday.
These soldiers ” will be able to fulfill logistical tasks such as welcoming visitors and disinfecting surfaces », Reports againThe duty. Tasks which, in such a race against time, are essential.