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Armed gangs jailbreak 4,000 inmates in Haiti after days-long gun battle with police

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Armed gangs jailbreak 4,000 inmates in Haiti after days-long gun battle with police

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Armed gangs in Haiti’s capital released roughly 4,000 inmates from the country’s largest prison after a days-long gun battle with police on Sunday.

The vast majority of the 4,000 men held in the Port-au-Prince jail successfully escaped, according to reports from local media. Many of the inmates were gang members charged in connection with the 2021 assassination of Hatian President Jovenel Moise.

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Armed gangs launched their attack against the prison earlier this weekend when Prime Minister Ariel Henry left the country on a visit to Kenya, seeking assistance in the fight against domestic gangs.

Gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, a former police officer, called on various armed groups to overthrow Henry’s regime. Gangs attacked both the National Penitentiary and the country’s main container port.

HAITIAN LEADER HEADS TO KENYA IN HOPES OF REVIVING ANTI-GANG POLICE FORCE PLANS

Armed gangs in Haiti’s capital released nearly 4,000 inmates from the country’s largest prison after a days-long gun battle with police on Sunday. (Getty Images)

“All of us, the armed groups in the provincial towns and the armed groups in the capital, are united,” Cherizier said.

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Henry had vowed to step down from his position by the end of February, but he argued the gang violence needed to be overcome before free and fair elections could be held.

ANTI-GANG TASK FORCE AGREEMENT WITH KENYA IN THE WORKS, HAITIAN GOVERNMENT SAYS

Haiti has not held an election since 2016.

Henry had vowed to step down from his position by the end of February, but he argued the gang violence needed to be overcome before free and fair elections could be held.

Henry succeeded in negotiating an agreement in Kenya on Friday.

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TORCHED SUGARCANE FIELDS MAKE HAITIAN RUM INDUSTRY LATEST VICTIM OF COUNTRY’S GANG CRISIS

Kenya had agreed in October to lead a U.N.-authorized international police force to Haiti, but the Kenyan High Court in January ruled the plan unconstitutional, in part because of a lack of reciprocal agreements between the two countries.

Last week’s agreement ensures that Kenya will send 1,000 police officers to the troubled Caribbean nation to help combat ongoing gang violence.

Kenya will send a detachment of 1,000 police officers to the troubled Caribbean nation to help combat ongoing gang violence. (Getty Images)

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Kenyan President William Ruto said in a statement that he and Henry witnessed the signing of the reciprocal agreements between the two countries on Friday.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Family demands answers in death of young Black man in Mississippi

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Family demands answers in death of young Black man in Mississippi
A mother on Friday pleaded for anyone to come forward with information about what happened to her son, a young Black man whose body was found on an island off the coast ​of Mississippi after he traveled there over the Fourth of July weekend with three white friends.
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Gunfire shatters Toronto Latin street festival, leaving at least 2 dead and multiple wounded

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Gunfire shatters Toronto Latin street festival, leaving at least 2 dead and multiple wounded

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The Toronto Police Service is investigating after gunfire broke out Saturday night at a large Latin street festival in Midtown Toronto, leaving at least two people dead and four others wounded.

Police said they received reports of a shooting at St. Clair Avenue West and Arlington Avenue at 8:12 p.m. local time and discovered an active shooter situation.

First responders found six people suffering from gunshot wounds, officials said. Two of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene.

Police respond to an active shooter at the Salsa on St. Clair event in Toronto, Saturday, July 11, 2026. (Keito Newman/The Canadian Press via AP)

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USPS WORKER ARRESTED AFTER ALLEGED MASS SHOOTING THREAT AGAINST TEXAS PRIDE EVENT, FBI SAYS

It is unclear what led to the shooting, and authorities said suspect(s) are still “outstanding.” No arrests have been made as of Saturday evening, police said. 

Toronto Police Deputy Chief Frank Barredo said during a news conference there seemed to be an “exchange of gunfire” between two individuals targeting each other.

“This is a very chaotic scene,” he said. “I think we had something in the neighborhood of 13,000 people participating in this festival.”

Police initially described the incident as an active shooter situation before later determining that was not the case.

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Police officers stand guard at the site of a deadly shooting at a salsa-themed street festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, July 11, 2026. (REUTERS/Cole Burston)

“There was some concern of an active shooter. That turned out not to be the case,” Barredo said.

Barredo said authorities were managing three separate crime scenes connected to the shooting. Two firearms have been recovered, he added.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “horrified” by the shooting.

“My prayers are with the families grieving their loved ones, those who are in critical condition, and everyone who has been affected by this horrific event,” he said in a statement.

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“My thanks to the police officers and other first responders whose courage and fast action prevented further tragedy,” he continued. “Police have my full support as they work to apprehend the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

Paramedics respond to an active shooter at the Salsa on St. Clair event in Toronto, Saturday.  (Keito Newman/The Canadian Press via AP)

FOUR DEAD AND 29 SHOT IN CHICAGO WEEKEND VIOLENCE AS LEADERS TOUT CRIME PROGRESS

Following the shooting, the Toronto Transit Commission suspended train stops at the nearby St. Clair West station on Line 1 Yonge-University due to what officials described as a “security incident.”

Regular transit service has since resumed.

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Authorities urged the public to avoid the area and follow all directives from police at the scene.

The TD Salsa on St. Clair Festival, Toronto’s biggest Latin culture celebration, was celebrating its 22nd annual event in Toronto’s Hillcrest Village.

Emergency Task Force vehicles and police officers are seen on the site of a shooting in Toronto on Saturday. (Jorge UZON / AFP via Getty Images)

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The Toronto Police Service told Fox News Digital no further information is available.

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This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, architect of modern Qatar

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Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, architect of modern Qatar

Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the former emir of Qatar who transformed the small Gulf state into one of the world’s wealthiest and most influential nations through its vast natural gas wealth and an ambitious programme of political, economic and social reforms, has died. He was 74.

A charismatic figure with a friendly demeanor, the father Emir assumed the reins of power in 1995. Regarded as the architect of modern Qatar, he embarked on forging development and reform plans and education programs.

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During his reign, Qatar’s GDP increased more than twenty-fourfold, while production from the North Field turned the country into the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas by 2006. After four years, the small nation’s LNG production capacity reached 77 million tons per annum, according to government’s figure.

His tenure also saw the establishment of the Qatar Foundation, the launch of Al Jazeera News Channel in 1996, the promulgation of Qatar’s first permanent constitution in 2004 and the introduction of municipal elections in which women were granted the right to vote and stand as candidates. Under his leadership, the Gulf nation also adopted the Qatar National Vision 2030 and secured the right to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

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Born in Doha in January 1952, Sheikh Hamad graduated from the British Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst before becoming commander of Qatar’s armed forces. He became heir apparent and defence minister in 1977, assumed power as emir on June 27, 1995, and handed over leadership to his son, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, on June 25, 2013.

“The future lies ahead of you, the children of this homeland, as you usher into a new era where young leadership hoists the banner,” Sheikh Hamad said as he announced his abdication and the carefully crafted transition to his son, the British-educated crown prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who was then 33.

The peaceful, voluntary transfer of power was rare in a region where such change usually results from death or overthrow.

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