NASSAU, Bahamas — All seven Bahamian diplomats in Haiti, including the spouse of the Chargè d’affaires Captain Godfrey Rolle, were airlifted out of Port-au-Prince by helicopter and have landed safely in the Dominican Republic, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed in a statement released on Friday, January 27.
“The Prime Minister has expressed his deep gratitude and highest consideration to the President of the Dominican Republic Luis Abinadar and the Foreign Minister of the Dominican Republic Roberto Alvarez for the execution of this process,” the statement said, adding: “The diplomats are likely to proceed home shortly.”
Prime Minister Philip E. Davis on Thursday ordered “an immediate, involuntary departure from Haiti of all diplomatic personnel, as soon as security conditions permit.”
In a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it was noted that the security situation in Haiti had become “less stable over the past three days, therefore steps are being taken out of an abundance of caution.”
“The pattern of security concerns is one of ebb and flow and these withdrawals are sometimes necessary to regroup,” the statement said. “The security forces in our country have been alerted to these developments. As soon as conditions permit, a team will be sent back into Haiti without further announcement.”
