US prohibits airlines from flying to Haiti and UN suspends flights after planes were shot by gangs

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The Federal Aviation Administration prohibited U.S. airlines from flying to Haiti for 30 days after gangs shot three planes and the United Nations also Tuesday temporarily suspended flights to Port-au-Prince, limiting humanitarian aid coming into the country.

Bullets hit a Spirit Airlines plane when it was about to land in the capital Monday, injuring a flight attendant and forcing the airport to shut down. Photos and videos obtained by The Associated Press show bullet holes dotting the interior of a plane.

On Tuesday, JetBlue and American Airlines announced that postflight inspections found their planes also had been shot Monday while departing Port-au-Prince. American suspended flights to the capital until Feb. 12.

The shootings were part of a wave of violence that erupted as the country plagued by gang violence swore in its new prime minister after a politically tumultuous process.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the agency documented 20 armed clashes and more roadblocks affecting humanitarian operation during the violence Monday. The Port-au-Prince airport will remain closed until Nov. 18, and Dujarric said the U.N. will divert flights to the country's second airport in the northern, more peaceful, city of Cap Haïtien.

Slashed access to the epicenter of the violence, Port-au-Prince, is likely to be devastating as gangs choking the life out of the capital have pushed Haiti to the brink of famine. Dujarric warned that cutting off flights would mean "limiting the flow of humanitarian aid and humanitarian personnel into the country.”

Already, a convoy of 20 trucks filled with food and medical supplies in the south had been postponed and an operation providing cash assistance to a thousand people in the Carrefour area where violence broke out had to be canceled.

“We are doing all we can to ensure the continuation of operations amidst this challenging environment,” he said. “We call for an end to the escalating violence, to allow for safe, sustained and unimpeded humanitarian access.”

On Tuesday, life in much of Haiti’s capital was frozen after the wave of violence. Heavily armed police in armored cars outside the airport checked trucks used for public transportation passing by.

Schools were closed, as were banks and government offices. Streets, where just a day before gangs and police were locked in a fierce firefight, were eerily empty, with few driving by other than a motorcycle with a man who had been shot clinging to the back.

The sounds of heavy gunfire still echoed through the streets in the afternoon — a reminder that despite political maneuvering by Haiti's elites and a strong push by the international community to restore peace, the country's toxic slate of gangs kept its firm hold on much of the Caribbean nation.

The United Nations estimates that gangs control 85% of the capital, Port-au-Prince. A U.N.-backed mission led by Kenyan police to quell gang violence struggles with a lack of funding and personnel, prompting calls for a U.N. peacekeeping mission.

President Luis Abinader in the Dominican Republic, which shares a border with Haiti, was the first leader on the island to condemn the violence, describing the shooting a “terrorist act”.

On Tuesday, a transitional council established in April to restore democratic order to Haiti also condemned the violence.

“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 council wrote in a statement.

The council has taken sharp criticism from many in Haiti who contend that its political fights and corruption allegations against three members created the political instability, allowing gangs to make violent power grabs like the one seen Monday.

That came to a head over the weekend, when it fired former interim Prime Minister Garry Conille — long at odds with the council. They replaced him with businessman Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, who was inaugurated Monday surrounded by suit-clad officials and diplomats while gangs terrorized the capital around them.

Neither Fils-Aimé or Conille have commented on the wave of violence.

Conille originally called the council's move illegal, but on Tuesday acknowledged Fils-Aimé's appointment in a post on the social media platform X.

“(I) wish him success in fulfilling this mission. At this crucial moment, unity and solidarity are essential for our country. Long live Haiti!" he wrote. Fils-Aimé promised to work with international partners to restore peace and hold long awaited elections, a vow also made by his predecessor.

But many Haitians, like 43-year-old Martha Jean-Pierre, have little taste for the political fighting, which experts say only gives gangs more freedom to continue expanding their control.

Jean-Pierre was among those to brave the streets of Port-au-Prince on Tuesday to sell the plantains, carrots, cabbage and potatoes she carried in a basket on her head. She had no choice, she said — selling was the only way she could feed her children.

“What good is a new prime minister if there's no security, if I can't move freely and sell my goods?” she said, nodding to her basket of vegetables. “This is my bank account. This is what my family depend on."

It was a frustration that concerned international players like the U.N. and the U.S. that have pushed for a peaceful resolution in Haiti.

On Tuesday, the U.S. State Department lamented that Conille and the council “were unable to move forward in a constructive manner" and called on Fils-Aimé and the council to provide a clear action plan outlining a joint vision on how to decrease violence and pave the path for elections to be held to “prevent further gridlock.”

“The acute and immediate needs of the Haitian people mandate that the transitional government prioritize governance over the competing personal interests of political actors,” it wrote in a statement.

Associated Press journalist David Koenig contributed to this report from Dallas and Edith Lederer contributed from the United Nations.

Police officers patrol an area near the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Police officers patrol near the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Police officers patrol near the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Police officers patrol near the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

A view of the Toussaint Louverture international airport, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

A view of the Toussaint Louverture international airport, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

The body of a man who was shot dead by a stray bullet, is secured to the floor of a tap-tap, in the Solino neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

A police officer patrols the entrance of the Toussaint Louverture International Airport, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Police officers patrol near the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

FILE - Haiti Prime Minister Garry Conille speaks during a joint press conference with Kenya's President William Ruto at the State House in Nairobi, Kenya, Oct. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga, File)

Journalists take cover from the exchange of gunfire between gangs and police in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Police officers patrol the area during an exchange of gunfire between gangs and police in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Police officers patrol a street during an exchange of gunfire between gangs and police in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

A police officer looks on during an exchange of gunfire between gangs and police in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

NEW YORK (AP) — Oprah Winfrey has a new book club pick and a new platform to talk books and other topics of the day.

On Tuesday, Winfrey launched “The Oprah Podcast,” a weekly series airing on her YouTube channel that will feature book club authors and guests ranging from “global newsmakers” to “cultural changemakers.” Upcoming podcasts will feature author-chef Ina Garten and Dr. Vivek Murthy, the U.S. surgeon general, among others.

Winfrey began “The Oprah Podcast” with Irish author Claire Keegan, whose prize-winning historical novel “Small Things Like These” is her latest book club selection. “Small Things Like These,” published in 2021, was adapted into a film starring Cillian Murphy that came out this year.

“To know that Oprah Winfrey took pleasure in reading my book is the most exquisite compliment, which will last my lifetime,” Keegan said in a statement. “To be told that she has also recommended it for others to read and has chosen this novel for her book club is a tremendous honor. May her wonderful book club encourage people into reading for years and years to come.”

Winfrey's interview with Keegan and other book club choices will be presented in partnership with Starbucks. Conversations will be filmed in various Starbucks cafes, starting with one in the Empire State Building, and the books will be paired with a Starbucks beverage. Winfrey previously worked with Starbucks in the 1990s for a project to raise literacy funds and in 2014 on Teavana Oprah Chai Tea, which raised millions for youth education organizations.

“Connecting with people about what matters to us in this moment, so we can all continue to reach our highest, truest potential is what I’m most interested in offering at this time in my life,” Winfrey said in a statement. “As one of my greatest pride and joys this past 30 years has been introducing books to new audiences, I am delighted to partner with Starbucks as we craft this new podcast. It is the perfect opportunity to bring together readers around things we both love: books, coffee and conversation.”

FILE - Oprah Winfrey appears during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris on Nov. 4, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)