Tag Archives: caribbean

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Merck to Share Its COVID-19 Pill with Developing Nations, Guyana to Vax Young Kids

 

MERCK TO SHARE COVID-19 PILL

Merck announced that it will share its antiviral pill to treat COVID-19 with developing countries in a move to broaden access to the promising treatment.

Merck and its partner, Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, said they had entered a licensing agreement for the treatment with the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), a United Nations-backed organization, that will allow the pill to be shared with 105 low- and middle-income countries.

Merck, Ridgeback and Emory University, where it was invented, will not receive royalties from the license as long as COVID-19 is still a public health emergency of international concern, as designated by the World Health Organization.

Pressure on vaccine makers to follow: The move by Merck and its partners could be an important precedent, given that advocates are pushing other companies, including COVID-19 vaccine makers, to also share their formulas and know-how with developing countries.

“Important step by Merck, which will further highlight the need for measures needed to convince and to enable more COVID vaccine manufacturers to take similar steps,” tweeted Tom Bollyky, director of the global health program at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Walensky: ‘Right direction’ but must be ‘vigilant’

Rochelle Walensky

 

© Getty Images

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky said Wednesday the U.S. is “heading in the right direction” but must stay “vigilant” as the winter approaches.

Walensky reported during a briefing that the seven-day daily average of COVID-19 cases has declined to about 65,900 per day as of Tuesday, a 16 percent reduction from last week.

“Down from our peak in early September, we are now heading in the right direction,” she said. “But with cases still high, we must remain vigilant heading into the colder, drier winter months.”

Hospitalizations and deaths have also dropped from peaks in recent months, with COVID-19 hospital admissions falling 54 percent since the last week of August when the highly transmissible delta variant was pummeling the country.

The seven-day average for hospitalizations reached about 5,500 per day this week in a 12 percent decrease from the previous week.

While the death rate has dropped, Walensky noted that the average for daily deaths still remains higher than 1,000 fatalities, with a 1,100 average reported Tuesday.

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Guyana to Begin Vaccinating Children As Young As Five Years Old

frank-anthony-guyana

The Guyana government says it will begin vaccinating children ages five to 11 next week once approval is given by the United States Food and Drugs Administration (FDA).

“Starting from next week, we are the examining the possibility of doing the vaccination of the five to 11 age group because we are anticipating that the US FDA would approve the Pfizer vaccine for this age group as well, so we will have another cohort of people that we will have to work on,” said Health Minister Dr. Frank Anthony.

US media reports noted that Pfizer’s request to roll out COVID-19 vaccines for Americans as young as five years old cleared a key regulatory hurdle Tuesday after a panel of the Food and Drug Administration’s outside vaccine advisers voted by a majority to back Pfizer’s request.

Guyana is currently administering the vaccine to children 12 to 18 years, along with pregnant and nursing women.

Earlier this week, the health minister noted the disparity in children 12-18 years taking the second dose of the vaccine and also noted that there needs to be more uptake of the first dose of the vaccine, with the current fully vaccinated rate of 17,498 or 24 percent of the adolescent population.

“Our approach has been that once we go to a school, open it up to the entire community so anybody within that age group can come to the school that we are operating in and they can get vaccinated. We have seen some of that but in other cases, I think people felt that only people going to that school can come and I think that has caused some confusion so we are working with the ministry of education to correct that so that we can appeal to more people,” Dr. Anthony said.

The health minister said the ministry will continue going into schools and working with the education ministry to ensure children of that age group are vaccinated as well as advising parents to ensure their children are immunized so that they could return to school.

CMC

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Employment Impact from the Pandemic Worse than Expected

The latest ILO Monitor report on the impact of COVID-19 on labour markets, shows a stalled global recovery and significant disparities between advanced and developing economies.

News | 27 October 2021

GENEVA (ILO News) – The loss of working hours in 2021 because of the pandemic will be significantly higher than previously estimated, as a two-speed recovery between developed and developing nations threatens the global economy as a whole, says the International Labour Organization.

The ILO is now projecting that global hours worked in 2021 will be 4.3 per cent below pre-pandemic levels (the fourth quarter of 2019), the equivalent of 125 million full-time jobs.  This represents a dramatic revision of the ILO’s June projection of 3.5 per cent or 100 million full-time jobs.

The eighth edition of the ILO Monitor: COVID-19 and the world of work , warns that without concrete financial and technical support, a “great divergence” in employment recovery trends between developed and developing countries will persist.

In the third quarter of 2021, total hours worked in high-income countries were 3.6 per cent lower than the fourth quarter of 2019. By contrast, the gap in low-income countries stood at 5.7 per cent and in lower-middle income countries, at 7.3 per cent.

From a regional perspective, Europe and Central Asia experienced the smallest loss of hours worked, compared to pre-pandemic levels (2.5 per cent). This was followed by Asia and the Pacific at 4.6 per cent. Africa, the Americas and Arab States showed declines of 5.6, 5.4 and 6.5 per cent respectively.

Vaccines and fiscal stimulus

This great divergence is largely driven by the major differences in the roll-out of vaccinations and fiscal stimulus packages.

Estimates indicate that for each 14 persons fully vaccinated in the second quarter of 2021, one full-time equivalent job was added to the global labour market. This substantially boosted the recovery.

Globally, losses in hours worked – in the absence of any vaccines – would have stood at 6.0 per cent in the second quarter of 2021, rather than the 4.8 per cent actually recorded.

However, the highly uneven roll-out of vaccinations means that the positive effect was largest in high-income countries, negligible in lower-middle-income countries and almost zero in low-income countries.

These imbalances could be rapidly and effectively addressed through greater global solidarity in respect of vaccines. The ILO estimates that if low-income countries had a more equitable access to vaccines, working-hour recovery would catch up with richer economies in just over one quarter.

Fiscal stimulus packages continued to be the other key factor in the trajectories of recovery. However, the fiscal stimulus gap remains largely unaddressed, with around 86 per cent of global stimulus measures being concentrated in high-income countries. Estimates show that on average, an increase in fiscal stimulus of 1 per cent of annual GDP increased annual working hours by 0.3 percentage points relative to the last quarter of 2019.

Productivity gap and enterprises

The COVID-19 crisis has also impacted productivity, workers and enterprises in ways that have led to greater disparities. The productivity gap between advanced and developing countries is projected to widen from 17.5:1 to 18:1 in real terms, the highest recorded since 2005.

“The current trajectory of labour markets is of a stalled recovery, with major downside risks appearing, and a great divergence between developed and developing economies” said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder. “Dramatically, unequal vaccine distribution and fiscal capacities are driving these trends and both need to be addressed urgently.”

“At the ILO, we have already started to act. Last June, the International Labour Conference adopted a Global Call to Action for a human-centred COVID-19 recovery, a roadmap that commits countries to ensuring that their economic and social recovery from the crisis is fully inclusive, sustainable and resilient. It is time to implement this roadmap, which is fully aligned with and supports the UN’s Common Agenda and its Global Accelerator for Jobs and Social Protection,” Ryder added.

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Alec Baldwin Shooting: Criminal Charges May Be Filed, Prosecutor Says

Criminal charges may still be filed over last week’s fatal shooting on a film set in New Mexico, US police say.

Actor Alec Baldwin accidentally shot dead cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounded a director on the set of the Western film Rust.

Investigators said a “lead projectile” had been removed from the director’s shoulder, and that it appeared to be a live round.

They said there was “some complacency” around safety on the set.

“All options are on the table,” District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said of any potential charges. “No one has been ruled out at this point.”

Presenting the department’s initial findings, Sante Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said: “We suspect there were other live rounds found on set.”

“We’re going to determine how those got there, why they were there, because they shouldn’t have been there,” he added.

He said police had recovered 600 pieces of evidence so far – including three firearms and 500 rounds of ammunition.

Sheriff Mendoza also said the projectile removed from Joel Souza’s shoulder had been handed over as evidence.

“I think the facts are clear – a weapon was handed to Mr. Baldwin. The weapon [was] functional and fired a live round killing Ms Hutchins and injuring Mr. Souza,” he said about the killing.

The sheriff told reporters there had been up to 100 people on the set of the film when the shooting happened on Thursday.

He also confirmed that two other people had handled the gun, an antique Colt .45 revolver, before it was given to Baldwin – the film’s armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and assistant director Dave Halls.

Alec Baldwin outside the Santa Fe County Sheriff's office following questioning over a fatal prop gun shooting, 21/10/2021Santa Fe County Sheriff’s office say Actor Alec Baldwin (pictured) is cooperating with the investigation

Halls told investigators he had failed to check all the rounds in the gun before handing it over, according to a court document made public on Wednesday.

He reportedly called out “cold gun” as he gave it to Baldwin, meaning he believed it to be safe.

Ms Gutierrez-Reed, meanwhile, told investigators that guns had been safely secured shortly before the shooting but ammunition had not been. She said guns were usually kept in a safe that only a few people had access to.

“We’re going to try to determine exactly how [this] happened and if they should have known that there was a live round in that firearm,” Sheriff Mendoza said.

Baldwin and the film’s producers have hired a private law firm to conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting, according to the Reuters news agency.

Several legal experts, however, have said it is unlikely that criminal charges will be filed against Baldwin.

The actor, known for his work on shows like 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live, is named as both an actor and producer on Rust. He is co-operating with investigators and has expressed his shock over what he described as a “tragic accident”.

The incident has sparked debate about safety regulations on Hollywood sets and the use of prop guns on productions.

“Obviously I think the industry has had a record recently of being safe,” Sheriff Mendoza told reporters. “[But] I think there are some safety issues that need to be addressed by the industry and possibly by the state of New Mexico.”

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Unity Domino Club maintains top position in Constituency #7 Domino League

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, October 27, 2021 (MMS-SKN) — Standard of competitiveness improved in the ninth segment of play in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League played on Tuesday evening October 26, at the new Lodge-Ottley’s Community Centre, as there were no extreme results as was the case witnessed last Thursday.

Former champion team Unity Domino Club maintained its lead on the points standing table giving a clear indication, unless something drastic happens in the remaining four segments of play of the one-round only encounter featuring fourteen teams, that it intends to regain the crown.

Unity beat Mansion Domino Club 13-8 on Tuesday evening, while the other former champion team in Constituency Number Seven Domino League, Lodge Domino Club, beat Molineux Domino Club13-7.

The game between yet another former champion team, Parsons Domino Club, and Unstoppable Domino Club had some drama as Parsons had at one time led comfortably 7-3, but Unstoppable forcefully came back and tied the game at 7-7.

Antonio ‘Mash’ Phillip of former champion team Unity Domino Club in action as his team beat Mansion Domino Club 13-8.

 

Not wanting to lose any more games and to keep their hopes alive, Parsons put pressure on Unstoppable winning five more games as their opponents added only two games and ended up leading 12-9. Needing only one game to win, the pair of Aston Williams and Melvin Gumbs returned 100 points without loss to earn a bonus game that gave them the 14-9 win.

Christ Church Domino Club, who beat Guinness Domino Club 14-9, also ended their game in a dramatic fashion as when they were leading 12-9 needing only one game to win, Steve Flemming and Curtis Williams raced to 100 points before their opponents could earn a single point, a feat that earned them a bonus game.

In other games, Phillips Domino Club beat Sylvers Domino Club 13-8, and Small Corner Bar Domino Club beat Ottley’s Domino Club 13-9. The game between defending champion team Tabernacle Domino Club and Saddlers Domino Club ended in dispute and it has been reported that the Tabernacle team captain wishes to refer the situation to the Disciplinary Committee.

In a rescheduled game that was played on Sunday October 24, at the new Lodge-Ottley’s Community Centre, Molineux Domino Club edged out Ottley’s Domino Club 13-12.

At the end of the ninth segment of play in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, former champion team Unity is still firmly at the top on the points standing table with 47 points. It is followed by Parsons 36 Points, Lodge 33 points, Christ Church 32 points, and Phillips 30 points.

Others, in order, are Molineux 26 points, Mansion 25 points, Saddlers 25 points, Sylvers 24 points, Guinness 21 points, defending champion team Tabernacle 20 points, Small Corner Bar 18 points, Unstoppable 16 points, and Ottley’s 12 points.

Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, which is the longest running such league in the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis, is sponsored by Prime Minister and Area Parliamentary Representative for St. Christopher Seven, Dr the Hon Timothy Harris.

Tenth segment of play in this only round of play in the 26th edition of the league plays off on Thursday October 28 at the new Lodge-Ottley’s Community Centre. Current points standing leader and former champion team, Unity, will meet another former champion team, Lodge, in what promises to be an exciting encounter.

The two teams from Constituency Number Six, former champion team Parsons and Saddlers will square it off, while an interesting scenario will come into play when brothers Norris Sharry for Small Corner Bar, and Cuthbert Sharry for Molineux will come up against each other. The other games are defending champion team Tabernacle vs. Christ Church, Unstoppable vs. Sylvers, Guinness vs. Mansion, and Phillips vs. Ottley’s.

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Saharan Dust, Volcanic Ash Impacts Caribbean Air Quality

Air quality levels across the Eastern and Southern Caribbean will be moderate over the next few days as the region is inundated by a plume of Saharan Dust and emissions from the volcano in La Palma, Canary Islands.

A forecast from the Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Service said particulate matter for Saharan Dust is between 2.5 and 10 in some instances.

The alert for Antigua and Barbuda and its neighbours stands at Level Two.

An excessive heat warning is also in effect for Antigua and Barbuda as temperatures are expected to be in the high 30s with the possibility for a maximum of 41 degrees Celsius.

Persons with medical complications such as asthma and heart issues are advised to pay close attention to their health as their ailments could become severe.

They should therefore reduce the time spent outside and have their medication nearby at all times.

Loop

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Floods, Landsldes Predicted for Caribbean Region Through January

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, (CMC) — The Barbados-based Caribbean Climate Outlook Forum (CariCOF) yesterday warned Caribbean countries to be prepared for high flooding and landslides until January next year.

In its latest Caribbean Climate Outlooks publication released here, CariCOF said that for the three-month period November 2021 to January 2022, La Niña conditions are in place.

La Niña is defined as cooler-than-normal sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean that impact global weather patterns.

“This means particularly high flooding, flash flood, landslide, rock fall and soil erosion potential across Belize and the Caribbean islands until December and, from late November, in the coastal Guianas,” CariCOF said.

It shared that with the transition into the dry season in Belize and the islands, frequent short dry spells are expected from Hispaniola westward, potentially impacting unprotected crop farming — especially in the case of pre-existing drought.

“On a positive note, with the 2021 heat season ending in October, heat stress should quickly subside,” it noted.

CariCOF also reported that as of October 1 “severe or worse” shorter-term drought has developed in the north-western and south-eastern portions of The Bahamas, northern Belize, westernmost Cuba, easternmost Guadeloupe, north-west Martinique and St Barth’s.

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Haiti Senate Leader Echoes Gang Chief’s Call for PM Henry to Resign

Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) Haiti’s Senate leader Joseph Lambert has joined calls for embattled Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign.

“Ariel Henry must resign because he has lost the trust of the country and he has failed to give results,” Lambert said on Tuesday in an exclusive interview with CNN at the senator’s home in Port-au-Prince. “We need to reestablish the state’s authority and restore security.”

Lambert said he believes a new transition government should be installed until elections can be held next — with himself as the interim president.

“This government doesn’t represent what we need now, we need a large consensus with all sectors. No one will be able to govern Haiti without a larger consensus. That’s what we have been saying and this is where I stand,” he told CNN.

The Prime Minister’s office has responded, saying Henry will not resign.

“Our doors remain open to anyone who wants to join us so we can have free, fair and credible elections. Our government wants to unite, not politicize,” the office said in a statement to CNN.

Henry has been in office since a power-sharing deal was brokered in the weeks after President Jovenel Moise was assassinated on July 7.

Moise appointed Henry as Prime Minister, but he had not yet been sworn in at the time of the president’s death. Weeks of political stalemate ensued over who would become de facto leader of the Caribbean nation, with Lambert considered among the contenders. A US-backed agreement ultimately saw Henry become Prime Minster and then-acting Prime Minster Claude Joseph become Foreign Minister.

Since then, Henry has faced a series of crises, including Haiti’s worst earthquake since 2010, the expulsion of thousands of Haitian migrants from the United States and a rise in gang-related kidnappings — among them the abduction of 17 missionaries from the US and Canada more than a week ago.

Perhaps most impactful, however, has been a crushing fuel shortage that has crippled the country. Gangs, including a notorious group called G9, have all but cut off access to key fuel depots on the country’s coast, preventing delivery of fuel around the country and paralyzing capital city Port-au-Prince.

Gang leaders have called on Henry to resign, saying they will end the fuel blockades once he steps down.

Sen. Lambert himself has long had political aspirations for Haiti’s top job. Though he is not the first to call for Prime Minister Henry to step down, his critics accuse the longtime Haitian politician of seeking now to take advantage of the country’s many crises for political gain.

Lambert has also struggled to tamp down widespread rumors that he is working with gangs to delay the flow of fuel, though zero evidence of that has been presented publicly. Haitian politicians have in the past often had relationships with the country’s gangs, using them as political tools to get out or suppress the vote.

“It’s totally false, they are just accusing opponents to hide their own incompetence,” said Lambert in response. “If they have proof there is a politician that is behind the violence they should arrest them and bring them to justice.”

After Moise’s assassination, Lambert led a failed attempt to install himself as interim president. Haiti’s senate voted to place him in the position, but the body did not have a quorum, leading to questions about whether it could even make the decision. Haiti has not held parliamentary elections since 2015, and only 10 senators are still seated. Less than 24 hours after the senate vote, Lambert pulled back and said his swearing-in had been postponed.

Lambert’s Senate term expires in January.

Journalist Etant Dupain contributed reporting.

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WORLD VIEW: Reality Bites US Congress Liberals, Oil Still King in Gulf, Sudan Coup Arrests, More

Oct 27, 2021

The Associated Press

The Rundown

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Many progressives have started lining up behind an emerging social and environment bill that’s neither as big or bold as they wanted, thanks to an outnumbered but potent band of party moderates who’ve enjoyed a disproportionate say…Read More

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SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Investigators plan to discuss their initial findings Wednesday in the fatal movie-set shooting in which Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun, killing a cinematographer and wounding the director….Read More

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RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — The global energy transition is perhaps nowhere more perplexing than in the Arabian Peninsula, where Saudi Arabia and other Gulf monarchies are caught between two daunting climate change scenarios that threaten their livel…Read More

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CAIRO (AP) — Sudanese security forces detained three prominent pro-democracy figures, family members and activists said Wednesday, as international pressure mounted on the country’s military to walk back the coup it staged earlier this week. …Read More

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SAO PAULO (AP) — A Brazilian Senate committee is recommending that President Jair Bolsonaro face a series of criminal indictments for actions and omissions related to the world’s second highest COVID-19 death toll. …Read More

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MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Among the once-taboo professions emerging from Somalia’s decades of conflict and Islamic extremism is the world of arts, and a 21-year-old …Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. moved a step closer to expanding COVID-19 vaccinations for millions more children as government advisers on Tuesday endorsed kid-size dose…Read More

CAIRO (AP) — The general leading Sudan’s coup has vowed to usher the country to an elected government. But Abdel-Fattah Burhan has powerful allies, including Gulf na…Read More

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — SpaceX is taming some toilet troubles in its Dragon capsules before launching four more astronauts. The company and NASA want to make sur…Read More

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Economy: Ecuador Demonstrators Block Roads, Dozens Arrested

ECONBy

QUITO, Oct 26 (Reuters) – Thousands of demonstrators protested against the economic policies of conservative Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso on Tuesday, days after he raised gasoline prices, blocking roads in some parts of the country.

Lasso, an ex-banker who took office in May, last week scrapped planned incremental rises in gasoline charges, meant to eventually align with international costs, following pressure by indigenous and other organizations.

He opted instead to raise the price of gasoline extra, a higher octane gasoline that is Ecuador’s most-used fuel, to a fixed $2.55 a gallon and diesel to $1.90 a gallon.

But unions and other groups want Lasso to freeze prices at lower rates and exempt sectors hit hard by COVID-19.

Five police officers were injured and two members of the armed forces were being held by a community in northern Quito, but were unharmed, Defense Minister Luis Hernandez told journalists.

Thirty-seven people were detained for blocking roads, he added.

The Ecuador Confederation of Indigenous Nations said demonstrators had been injured but did not give a figure.

People march during a protest against the economic policies of conservative Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso, days after he raised gasoline prices, in Guayaquil, Ecuador October 26, 2021. REUTERS/Vicente Gaibor del Pino
People protest against the economic policies of conservative Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso, days after he raised gasoline prices, in Guayaquil, Ecuador October 26, 2021. REUTERS/Vicente Gaibor del Pino
A man participates in a protest against the economic policies of conservative Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso, days after Lasso raised gasoline prices, in Guayaquil, Ecuador October 26, 2021. REUTERS/Vicente Gaibor del Pino

People protest against the economic policies of conservative Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso, days after he raised gasoline prices, in Guayaquil, Ecuador October 26, 2021. REUTERS/Vicente Gaibor del Pino

Interior Minister Alexandra Vela said marches were peaceful except for a few incidents in the afternoon and said the government was open to dialogue.

Gasoline costs have risen significantly since Lasso’s predecessor, Lenin Moreno, began monthly increases in May 2020.

“We don’t agree that the measures implemented because of the crisis should fall on workers and the middle class,” said university professor Victor Sanchez, 55, as he marched in central Quito with about 1,000 others.

Police used tear gas in the capital amid small clashes with protesters, while officers on horseback blocked the entrance to the plaza that had been the marchers’ destination.

Marches also took place in Guayaquil and Cuenca.

Indigenous groups blocked the road that connects Quito to the country’s north with earth and trees, and others in various Andean provinces were closed.

Indigenous organization CONFENIAE said some roadways in the Amazon region had been shuttered from the early morning.

“We didn’t come to destabilize, we came to make economic demands of the government,” CONAIE president Leonidas Iza told demonstrators in Panzaleo.

Reporting by Alexandra Valencia; additional reporting by Tito Correa Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb Editing by Rosalba O’Brien, Marguerita Choy and Leslie Adler

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Haiti: Amidst Gasoline Shoratges, Gang Leader Demands Prime Minister Resign

By and

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Oct 26 (Reuters) – Haiti’s streets were unusually quiet on Tuesday and gasoline stations remained dry as gangs blocked the entrance to ports that hold fuel stores and the country’s main gang boss demanded that Prime Minister Ariel Henry resign.

Days-long fuel shortages have left Haitians with few transportation options and forced the closure of some businesses. Hospitals, which rely on diesel generators to ensure electricity due to constant blackouts, may shut down as well.

The situation has put further pressure on a population already struggling under a weakening economy and a wave of gang kidnappings, which include the abduction earlier this month of a group of Canadian and American missionaries.

Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier, leader of the “G9” coalition of gangs in the metropolitan area of the capital, Port-au-Prince, said in a radio interview on Monday night that he would ensure safe passage of fuel trucks if Henry leaves office.

“The areas under the control of the G9 are blocked for one reason only – we demand the resignation of Ariel Henry,” Cherizier said in an interview on Haiti’s Radio Mega.

“If Ariel Henry resigns at 8 a.m., at 8:05 a.m. we will unblock the road and all the trucks will be able to go through to get fuel.”

A spokesperson for Henry’s office did not respond to a request for comment. Reuters was unable to contact Cherizier.

His statements show how gangs have taken on an increasingly political role following the July assassination of President Jovenel Moise. Cherizier has said Henry should “answer questions” linking him to Moise’s murder. Henry has denied any involvement.

Elections had originally been scheduled for November but were suspended after Henry last month dismissed the council that organizes elections, which critics had accused of being biased in favor of Moise. Henry has promised to appoint a non-partisan council that will set a new date.

Kidnappings have been in the headlines for months as Haitians from all walks of life face abduction by the increasingly powerful gangs.

The missionaries traveling as part of a trip organized by Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries were abducted by a gang called 400 Mawozo that operates east of the capital and is seeking a ransom of $1 million for each person.

Christian Aid Ministries asked people in a statement on Tuesday to remember both those “being held hostage as well as those recovering from the experience of being kidnapped.”

Jimmy "Barbecue" Cherizier, leader of the 'G9' coalition of gangs in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince, looks on after speaking to members of the media, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti October 26, 2021. REUTERS/Ralph Tedy Erol
Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier, leader of the ‘G9’ coalition of gangs in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince, looks on after speaking to
A sign with an image of assassinated President Jovenel Moise is seen as members of the Haitian National Police clear a street blockade set up in protest of insecurity and fuel shortages, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti October 25, 2021. REUTERS/Ralph Tedy Erol

The State Department said last week the U.S. government had dispatched a “small team” to assist in efforts to locate and free the missionaries.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday the United States had deployed “a significant number of law enforcement specialists and hostage recovery specialists” to Haiti.

‘THE WORST I’VE SEEN’

Haiti’s foreign aid bureau, BMPAD, which oversees fuel procurement, tweeted a video saying the country had 150,000 barrels of diesel and 50,000 barrels of gasoline, with another 50,000 barrels of gasoline set to arrive on Wednesday.

A total of 100,000 barrels of diesel and gasoline would supply Haiti’s fuel needs for five to seven says, said Marc Andre Deriphonse, head of the country’s service-station owners’ association, ANAPROSS.

Businesses have been warning that they may have to halt operations for lack of fuel. Telecoms firms said some cell towers are no longer in operation.

“This is the worst I’ve seen,” said one motorcycle taxi driver waiting to pick up passengers outside Port-au-Prince, when asked about the fuel shortages. He declined to give his name.

Motorcycle drivers strap one-gallon containers to their bikes in the hopes of filling them with fuel sold on the black market. A gallon of gasoline on the street can now fetch $20, compared with typical filling-station prices of around $2.

Transportation industry leaders have called for strikes to protest the wave of kidnappings, which have disproportionately affected truck drivers and public transport workers.

United Nations children’s agency UNICEF saidon Sunday it had negotiated fuel deliveries to Haitian hospitals but that the provider later refused to make the deliveries, citing security conditions.

At one police station near Port-au-Prince, two officers had been unable to get to work due to fuel shortages, according to a police official, who asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak with reporters.

“Most of our vehicles have about a quarter of a tank,” he said.

Reporting by Brian Ellsworth and Gessika Thomas in Port-au-Prince; Additional reporting by Brad Brooks; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien and Peter Cooney

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