Hurricane Irene Killed Two in Haiti and Flooded Farmland

[Judi Lynn]

Source: United Nations

Hurricane Irene Killed Two in Haiti and Flooded Farmland
Friday, 26 August 2011, 12:08 pm
Press Release: United Nations
Hurricane Irene Killed Two in Haiti and Flooded Farmland, UN Reports

New York, Aug 25 2011 - Hurricane Irene killed two people in Haiti, flooded houses, cut roads, unleashed landslides and devastated farm fields during its passage off the coast of the Caribbean country earlier this week, the United Nations reported today.

Nearly 1,000 people were evacuated to emergency centres, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) spokesperson Emmanuelle Schneider said in an update on the situation, citing local officials.

All alerts for Haiti have now been lifted in connection with the hurricane, which saw the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) mobilize some its 12,000 uniformed personnel in preparation for any emergency. The storm has since battered the Bahamas and is now headed towards the United States.

The UN has more than 100,000 tents and tarpaulins in readiness in Haiti, enough food in reserve to feed 500,000 people for a month, and a 30-day supply of medical kits for 10,000 people in the event of a crisis in a country that is still struggling to recover from last year’s devastating earthquake, which killed more than 200,000 people and displaced 2.3 million others.

Read more: http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO1108/S00544/hurricane-irene-killed-two-in-haiti-and-flooded-farmland.htm

[Judi Lynn]

1. WikiLeaks Reveal: U.S. and UN Officials Oversaw Integration of Ex-Army Paramilitaries into Haiti’s P

WikiLeaks Reveal: U.S. and UN Officials Oversaw Integration of Ex-Army Paramilitaries into Haiti’s Police Force
Wednesday, 17 August 2011 12:09 Jeb Sprague

Throughout 2004 and 2005, Haiti’s unelected de facto authorities, working alongside foreign officials, integrated at least 400 ex-army paramilitaries into the country’s police force, secret U.S. Embassy cables reveal.

For a year and a half following the ouster of Haiti’s elected government on Feb. 29, 2004, UN, OAS, and U.S. officials, in conjunction with post-coup Haitian authorities, vetted the country’s police force – officer by officer – integrating paramilitaries with the goal of both strengthening the force and providing an alternative “career path” for paramilitaries.

Hundreds of police considered loyal to President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's deposed government were purged. Some were jailed and a few killed, according to numerous sources interviewed.

At the same time, former soldiers from the disbanded Haitian Armed Forces (FAdH), who were assembled in a paramilitary “rebel” force which worked with the country’s elite opposition to bring down Aristide, were stationed – officially and unofficially – in many towns across the country.

More:
http://www.towardfreedom.com/home/americas/2506-wikileaks-reveal-us-and-un-officials-oversaw-integration-of-ex-army-paramilitaries-into-haitis-police-force

[MisterP]

2. how very Libyan...