Following the assassination of the President of the Republic of Haiti, Jovenel Moïse perpetrated by an armed group on Wednesday July 7, 2021 at his private residence Luis Abinader, the President of the Dominican Republic, convened urgently, the same day the High military command and civilian officials who are members of the National Security and Defense Council at a meeting at the Ministry of Defense to discuss measures that will strengthen border security and ensure the return of Dominican citizens who are on Haitian territory.

The National Security Council meeting started at 8:00 a.m. and ended at 10:00 a.m. with the following decisions:

1. The Gabion plan is activated, which orders at critical points of the border the reinforcement of the patrols with troops of specialized tactical units.

2. The entire border is immediately closed to the transit of vehicles and people

3. The activities of binational markets in border provinces are suspended until further notice.

4. Only Dominican citizens and Dominican or foreign diplomatic personnel will be authorized to travel to the national territory, via the Joaquín Balaguer airport in El Higüero, on duty in Haiti.

5. The land, air and sea border is completely reinforced with elite units and teams from all military branches of the country.

6. Air crews and necessary staff are stationed in the border area to ensure the safe transfer of Dominican citizens residing in Haiti.

7. Travel from airports in the Dominican Republic to the Republic of Haiti is suspended until further notice.

The National Defense and Security Council has indicated that the responsibility for overseeing all measures will lie with the Commander General of the Dominican Republic Army, Major General Julio E. Florián Pérez. These measures will be applied immediately. In addition, it was reported that although the border has been completely calm so far, they will continue to monitor the situation to assess the possible need for further measures.

SL/ HaitiLibre