Dec. 16 (UPI) — The remaining U.S. hostages who were abducted by a gang in Haiti two months ago were released on Thursday, according to the Ohio-based Christian group for which they worked.

The missionaries were part of the Christian Aid Ministries, which does charity work in Haiti, when they were abducted by 400 Mawozo — The 400 Mawozo gang, which controls territory to the east of the capital Port-au-Prince, had said it was seeking a ransom of $1 million for each of the missionaries.

The gang’s leader, who goes by the nickname Lanmo Sanjou and has appeared in internet videos wearing a Spider-Man mask, had said he was willing to kill the hostages.

A total of 17 missionaries, which included some children, were kidnapped. The gang had previously released five of them.

Five of the hostages had already been freed in recent weeks, and the final dozen were found by authorities on a mountain called Morne à Cabrit, said police spokesman Garry Derosier.

“We glorify God for answered prayer — the remaining 12 hostages are free,” the organization said in a message on their website. “Join us in praising God that all 17 of our loved ones are now safe. Thank you for your fervent prayers throughout the past two months. We hope to provide more information as we are able.”

Most of the aid workers were Americans and one was Canadian.

Gary Desrosiers, a spokesman for the Haiti National Police, confirmed that the hostages were free, according to NBC News.

The gang had initially demanded a ransom of $1 million per hostage. It’s not yet clear if any ransom money was paid to the kidnappers.

The group of missionaries were kidnapped as they drove through the Port-au-Prince suburb of Croix des Bouquets after visiting an orphanage.

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BASSETERRE (15th December, 2021): Today we are proud to announce that Minister of Tourism Lindsay F.P. Grant has been named Caribbean Tourism Minister of the Year in the Caribbean Journal annual Caribbean Travel Awards. This award recognizes Minister Grant’s impeccable leadership through a turbulent year of managing and driving the return of tourism to the destination. While working nimbly with the Federation’s health officials to manage and adjust tourism protocols and driving the creation of an industry-leading set of cruise protocols, Minister Grant steered the destination through the most challenging periods of the pandemic while simultaneously positioning the Federation as the premier destination where international air and sea travellers can enjoy a quintessential Caribbean escape.

“I am extremely honoured to receive this exceptional designation from our esteemed colleagues at Caribbean Journal who designated these travel awards,” said Lindsay F.P. Grant, Minister of Tourism, Transport and Ports. “St. Kitts and Nevis have shown how strong and resilient the people of the Caribbean are and continue to be as we navigate these challenging times together. The future is bright in the Federation. We have recently lifted our mandatory arrival testing and Vacation in Place (quarantine) for international air travellers and we have opened Port Zante for free-flow exploration. This week is the busiest we have seen for cruise arrivals since the island reopened its borders to international visitors, with 21 ships in port this week. We also expect to have continued growth in our stay-over international air travellers looking to 2022.” 

 “The past year was defined by abundant tourism success as we saw the vast majority of the Caribbean roaring back this year, with the highest-volume tourism in history for most destinations,” said Alexander Britell, Editor and Publisher, Caribbean Journal. “Minister Grant’s leadership in navigating this tumultuous landscape for St. Kitts and Nevis has been a bold statement to the world that the Caribbean is the most resilient place on earth and cannot be defeated, taking every challenge and using it to power a new future.”

 The Caribbean Travel Awards eighth annual edition celebrates the people, places and properties that exemplify the best of the magnificent region. Each year, the Caribbean Journal editorial staff selects these awards based on the destination and success over the past year.

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The government of St Lucia has announced that Carnival 2022 will be hosted, but only vaccinated revelers will be allowed to attend.

Dubbed ‘The Vaxxed Mas’, Carnival 2022 in St Lucia is based on approval from the Ministry of Health according to existing protocols, said the government in a press release.

The aim for The Vaxxed Mas is to create a bubble to ensure the safety of everyone involved; the general public and carnival patrons alike. Everyone participating, revelers, patrons, support staff and service providers must be fully vaccinated.

Dr Ernest Hilaire, Minister for Tourism, Investment, Creative Industries, Culture and Information says that as a Carnival enthusiast himself, it is important to build on the hard work and dedication that started by the people who brought carnival to where it is now.

“We have to ensure that we preserve the health of St Lucia while creating an economic activity for our people to benefit from,” Dr Hilaire says.

With Carnival being a major part of Tourism in St Lucia, it brings in thousands of visitors to the island. Dr Hilare says that a lot of people use the Carnival season to showcase their talents and it is even more important after the two-year hiatus to encourage them to continue doing so.

Strict protocols and guidelines will be implemented and further plans will be announced at a later date to ensure the safety of everyone for Carnival 2022. Carnival in St Lucia is usually held in the month of July in the capital city of Castries.

No other CARICOM island has officially announced plans for their annual carnival celebrations as yet.

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A memorandum of understanding was signed Wednesday between the Government of Haiti and transport unions barely a week after an increase in the price of fuels was decreed by Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

Union spokesperson Anderson Desroches explained the agreement encompassed wages, regularizing motorcycle taxis, and granting driving licenses and registration plates, as the main issues.

The accord also provides for the creation of a regulatory body for the oil market as well as keeping some subsidies regarding public transport. The Government is also due to grant access to vehicles to those whose ageing units are no longer fit for service, it was reported.

The agreement came after protests ensuing the 24% price hike for gasoline and 100% for diesel and kerosene. Transport operators had threatened to paralyze the country until a solution was found.

Union leader Changé Mehu warned that “after this week, if the Government does not do anything about the subsidy, we will set the prices of the trips in the ten departments of the country in accordance with the recent increase in petroleum products.”

Meanwhile, while this crisis was unfolding, news from Cap-Haitien added to the Haitian nightmare as the death toll of the explosion involving a tank lorry had increased to 75 from the 60 reported originally. Local authorities also reported 56 people were still hospitalized in critical condition. Most of the new deaths fatalities were patients hospitalized with severe burns.

A few hours after the accident, 15 people were airlifted to Port-au-Prince and the city of Hinche to receive treatment at hospitals specializing in burn injuries.

The accident occurred in the early hours of Tuesday, after a tanker truck overturned around a curve in a street in a central neighborhood of Cap-Haitien, Haiti’s second-largest city. Dozens of people tried to steal the fuel from the truck, for which some hit the tank with hammers.

It is yet unclear what caused the spark that caused the explosion, which also affected about 20 homes located in adjacent streets.

The Haitian government also announced Tuesday that it was building two field hospitals to treat the wounded, as the two main medical centers in Cap-Haitien were already saturated.

Henry decreed three days of official mourning nationwide.

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TORONTO, Dec 15 (Reuters) – Canada’s government implored residents on Wednesday not to leave the country as provinces ramp up vaccinations to combat the fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant, even as efforts to head off a COVID-19 wave are complicated by public fatigue over the pandemic.

COVID-19 case numbers are increasing, with the national seven-day average of new cases at its highest point since Oct. 1, as Canadian hospitals struggle to clear backlogs from months of postponed procedures. Many exhausted staff members appear ill-equipped for another surge in infections.

“I say very clearly: Now is not the time to travel,” Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos told a news conference, adding it is clear there is community transmission of Omicron in Canada.

“I understand this sucks,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters as he urged Canadians to follow public health advice and “be careful during this holiday season. Get your kids their shots.”

Children aged 5 to 11 had the highest infection rate of any age group in Ontario for the two weeks ended Tuesday.

Ontario will start offering a third shot of the vaccine to everyone over age 18 this week, while shortening the required gap between second and third doses to three months from six.

The province, Canada’s most-populous, is also reducing capacity by half at indoor events with a capacity of at least 1,000, including sports activities, concerts and commercial film and television production.

Canada has banned travel from 10 African countries because of concerns about the new variant.

The federal government advised residents in March 2020 not to travel abroad unless necessary. It withdrew the notice this past October – before the first Omicron cases were reported – citing the success of vaccination campaigns.

Peter Juni, director of Ontario’s COVID-19 science advisory table, urged people to take precautions, get vaccinated and not take Omicron lightly.

“What really worries me is that people are asleep at the steering wheel, internationally,” he said. “They have wishful thinking it will be mild. … This is not a realistic attitude.”

Scientists suspect Omicron is more transmissible given its rapid spread, although they caution it is too early to draw conclusions about its severity. read more

‘MASSIVE VULNERABILITY’

There is “massive vulnerability” in Canada’s healthcare systems, said Andrew Morris, an infectious disease doctor in Toronto, who added it is “highly likely” they will be overwhelmed.

In Alberta, a western Canadian province that experienced a punishing fourth wave, Dr. Christopher Doig’s ICU in Calgary still has COVID-19 patients, some of whom have been there for weeks. It is still operating at about 110% capacity, he said.

Shifting staff from other areas lets them “surge up” if needed, Doig said. “The downside of those surges is it pulls staff from other areas,” and the pandemic backlog of surgeries grows.

Health officials are trying to persuade the public to get third doses of COVID-19 vaccines.

Amid fears of asymptomatic COVID-19 transmission, provinces that were given millions of rapid antigen tests by the federal government have come under fire for not distributing them more widely.

Ontario promised to make 2 million tests available in “high-traffic” areas and to allot five per student to school children this week. Quebec will hand out five tests per person starting next week. Alberta promised to give out 500,000 starting on Friday.

British Columbia health officials said this week they had not received the tests they were hoping for from the federal government and defended the province’s providing tens of thousands of rapid tests a week to hundreds of private employers.

Ontario said this week it is “temporarily interrupting” its return-to-office plan for provincial employees.

Alberta loosened restrictions on private gatherings on Wednesday, with Premier Jason Kenney citing pandemic fatigue.

Juni said he understands that people are tired of the pandemic.

“I’m completely exhausted,” he said. “I’ve had it. I’m done completely. But the virus doesn’t care.”

Reporting by Anna Mehler Paperny and Steve Scherer; Additional reporting by Nia Williams, Allison Lampert, Ismail Shakil, David Ljunggren and Allison Martell; Editing by Paul Simao and Peter Cooney

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