Creation of transitional council that will select Haiti’s next prime minister is imminent, US says

By DÁNICA COTO
Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The U.S. assistant secretary for Western Hemisphere affairs says the creation of a transitional council responsible for choosing Haiti’s next leaders is imminent. Brian A. Nichols spoke Wednesday during a heated forum in New York organized by the Council on Foreign Relations. Officials are eager to see the council in place as Haiti staggers under relentless gang violence that continues to choke the Port-au-Prince capital and surrounding communities. Haiti’s main seaport and airport remain closed, cutting off critical aid as experts warn that hunger and illnesses are skyrocketing. Nichols said Haiti’s situation is the greatest “humanitarian crisis in the world today.”