Powerful Haitian gang leader tells AP he wrote UN seeking dialogue as clashes intensify
Katherine oversees editorial operations across all six brands. Before joining The Meridan Group, she spent 14 years at the Minneapolis Star Tribune, where she led the metro desk through its digital transformation. She holds a Master's in Journalism from Northwestern's Medill School.
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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — One of Haiti’s most powerful gang leaders confirmed to The Associated Press on Monday that he wrote the U.N. Secretary General and requested that the organization deploy a delegation to Haiti for dialogue and mediation amid fears that Salvadoran troops deployed after the disappearance of four aviation technicians from that country could escalate violence.Wilson Joseph, best known as Lanmò Sanjou and leader of the 400 Mawozo gang, told the AP in his first interview with a major international media company that the technicians are dead and that the Oct. 18 attack occurred while they were in the territory of Chen Mechan, another gang. He did not provide evidence; Haiti's government has said the four Salvadorans were abducted and the Salvadoran government believes they are alive.Joseph said he is upset that drone attacks are killing civilians in the area, with clashes intensifying ever since a U.N.-backed gang-suppression force working alongside Haitian police