Fifteen people have died this Wednesday in a shooting recorded in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, according to official sources. According to Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe, police faction Fantom 509 has organized shootings as revenge for the death hours before the death of a trade unionist policeman in Madrid. Among the deaths were journalist Diego Charles and activist Antoinette Duclair.

The shooting took place in the Delmas district of Port-au-Prince. At least thirteen civilians have been killed alongside Radio Vision 2000 journalist Diego Charles and the feminist militant of the opposition party Antoinette Duclair Matrice Libération, who have roundly denied the murder. When Duclaire was driving Charles to his home in the car, and they were in front of his house, people who haven't been identified yet have fired from a motorcycle. The video of the murder has spread through the social networks of the city.

Following the shootings, Haitian Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe has offered a press conference to give details of what happened. The Member attributes the crimes to the group of rebel factions of the Police, Fantom 509, who has denounced the crimes. As detailed by Haitian National Police Director Léon Charles, the shootings have been a revenge: hours earlier, Agent Guerby Geffrard, a member of the SPNH-17 trade union, was killed and his allies prepared the shootings as a response. The National Police has opened an investigation to clarify the facts, as reported by Interior.

Situation of violence in Haiti

The violent faction Fantom 509, which separated from the National Police in 2018, has caused a serious security crisis in Haiti. Some 13,600 people have had to flee Port-au-Prince since early June as a result of inter-group wars, according to data from the Berria media.