US bans flights to Haiti after airliner hit by gunfire

United States aviation authorities prohibited all civilian flights to Haiti for a month on Tuesday.

The decision comes a day after a Spirit Airlines jetliner coming from Florida was shot at on approach to the capital Port-au-Prince, as a new prime minister took the reins of a nation in the midst of a bloody gang war.

The flight had to reroute to the Dominican Republic, with one flight attendant suffering minor injuries.

The airport had to shut down in the immediate aftermath, cutting off Haiti's main connection to the rest of the world.

"This cowardly crime, which threatens Haiti's sovereignty and security, aims to isolate our country on the international stage. The perpetrators of these heinous acts will be hunted down and brought to justice," the country's unelected transitional council said on Tuesday.

Violence flares up as new PM sworn in

Many stores and schools were shuttered as a result of the bursts of gunfire which came the day after the new prime minister had been sworn in, with locals fearing more attacks by the powerful gangs which control 80 percent of the city.

Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime was sworn in on Monday, replacing outgoing premier Garry Conille, who was appointed in May but became embroiled in a power struggle with the country's transitional council.

Haiti has not had a president since the assassination of Jovenel Moise in 2021, with the country suffering from political instability ever since.

ftm/zc (AP, AFP, Reuters)