World
Who is 'Barbecue,' the gang leader wreaking havoc in Haiti?
The leader of Haiti’s most powerful gang may now be the most powerful person in the country, which has been thrust into chaos by rival gangs calling for Prime Minister Ariel Henry to step down.
“The people are desperate. They’re in a desperate situation,” former NFL star Jack Brewer, who now works as the chairman of the Jack Brewer Foundation and is on the board of the GEO Group, said of the situation in Haiti in an interview with Fox News Digital. “You have a massive brain drain going on, where anybody who has the ability to leave, they leave, and then you leave the voiceless and the most poor and vulnerable. Those are the ones that are left to suffer.”
Brewer, who has worked over a decade in Haiti on multiple causes, is not surprised by the recent unrest in the country. His comments come as Haiti has been plagued by renewed violence and unrest over the last few weeks. The country’s powerful gangs have attacked government targets, burned police stations and raided prisons, leading to the release of thousands of inmates.
At the center of the chaos is 46-year-old Haitian gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, known by the nickname “Barbecue.” He runs a gang coalition called the G9 Family and Allies, which has risen to become perhaps the most powerful gang in Haiti.
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Armed gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier and his men in Port-au-Prince, Haiti March 5,2024. (Clarens Siffroy/AFP via Getty Images)
Cherizier previously served as an officer with the Haitian National Police before becoming a gang leader, but his notorious reputation started even during his time in law enforcement, including allegations he was responsible for the 2018 La Saline massacre, when at least 71 people were killed and 400 homes were burned down. It earned him the nickname “Barbecue,” according to The Associated Press, though Cherizier claims the name came from his mother’s work as a fried chicken street vendor.
“In America, you don’t associate law enforcement, former law enforcement, with gangs,” Mark Montgomery, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital.
But that reality is different in Haiti, Montgomery explained, noting that Haiti’s gangs are more akin to old American gangs of the 19th century that tried to run neighborhoods in New York City. A more modern-day comparison would be Mexican drug cartels, though Montgomery noted that cartels are dependent on a specific revenue stream and control more defined territory, while gangs in Haiti are more scattered and use multiple avenues of illegal activity to fund their operations.
Cherizier runs what is potentially the most powerful of hundreds of gangs, Montgomery said, with the group having control of both maritime and aviation checkpoints that allow for both revenue streams as a result of ransom payments and the ability to bring in large amounts of weapons.
That control also allows Cherizier to benefit from the large amounts of U.S. aid flowing into Haiti. Montgomery argues it is inevitable some of that money and other assistance will fall into the hands of gangs.
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But Cherizier’s ambitions seemingly became even greater in recent weeks. The gang leader said this month the ultimate goal was to overthrow Henry’s government. That statement also came with threats. Cherizier said continued support for the prime minister by the “international community” would “lead us directly to a civil war which will end in genocide.”
For his part, Henry agreed to resign last month before an apparent change of heart led him to travel abroad in search of support for a United Nations peace-keeping force to be deployed to Haiti to combat gang violence. He has since been held up in the Dominican Republic, where Tuesday he again vowed to step down and allow for a transition of power.
“The government that I am leading will resign immediately after the installation of (a transition) council,” Henry said in a video address, according to a report from Reuters. “I want to thank the Haitian people for the opportunity I had been granted.
Pedestrians and commuters fill a street in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
“I’m asking all Haitians to remain calm and do everything they can for peace and stability to come back as fast as possible.”
But that instability may be part of the point for Cherizier, Montgomery said, arguing the gang leader “flourishes on instability” and could seek to “keep the country as unstable as possible.”
As for whether Cherizier’s end goal could be to take over political power in the country, Montgomery noted that the gang leader’s “methodology” would not “give him a path to prime minister or president.”
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“He does do things that make you think he wants popular support,” Montgomery added. “They do a little bit of Robin Hood … redistribution of wealth. But he also supports people ransacking banks, stores and shopping malls.”
Eddy Acevedo, the chief of staff to the president and CEO of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, told Fox News Digital the situation in Haiti has been brewing for some time.
“The instability in Haiti did not occur overnight. For years, even before President Moïse was assassinated, the situation continued to deteriorate and, unfortunately, now that there is all this attention, it may be too late,” Acevedo said.
With the situation reaching a breaking point, Acevedo argued Cherizier has tried to position himself as “being a man of the people, but this could not be more wrong.”
“After he left the police force, his leadership of the G-9 gang led to several other massacres across the country and has been responsible for over 1,800 killings and injuries,” Acevedo, a former national security adviser for USAID, said. “Due to these vicious atrocities, Barbeque was sanctioned in 2022 by the U.S., Canada and the U.N. Security Council.”
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Brewer argued that Cherizier benefits from quite a bit of popular support.
“This is not a guy that’s looked at as like this bad guy that everybody wants to overturn. … There’s a big chunk of that country that absolutely love him, that he feeds, that he takes care of,” Brewer said.
Gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier speaks into his phone before a mission as two of his men watch in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, March 5, 2024. (Clarens Siffroy/AFP via Getty Images)
Realities on the ground, such as Cherizier’s popular support, are facts that U.S. and international leaders fail to understand, Brewer said, arguing U.S. policy in Haiti will continue to fail the country’s people. Those failures will continue to become a bigger issue for the U.S., Brewer said, arguing the instability will lead to a continued flow of migrants to the southern border.
“I said two years ago, if we don’t do something in Haiti, the crisis is going to get to the point where they’re going to flood our borders, and every criminal and the baddest people in Haiti will come to the United States of America,” Brewer said. He argued that reality has already come true in the two years since and will only continue to get worse in the coming years.
The only solution, Brewer said, is for the U.S. military to intervene, arguing the U.S. could easily defeat the gangs and create a new level of stability in the country.
“We’re talking about funding Ukraine, we need to be funding this scenario that’s on our border,” Brewer said. “I think it would take us three days. I think in three days you could have all of these thugs wiped out and stability back.”
From there, Brewer argued for a “Corps of Engineers” that could provide a base for the country to rebuild and to help its people gain critical skills that would elevate it toward a brighter future.
“If you don’t do that, you’ll never rebuild this nation,” Brewer said. “That’s where all of our money should be going, not to these other far-fetched ideas that may work in other countries.”
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices rose in early trading Sunday as a standoff between Iran and the U.S. prevented tankers from using the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf waterway that is crucial to global energy supplies.
The price of U.S. crude oil increased 6.4% to $87.90 per barrel an hour after trading resumed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 5.8% to $95.64 per barrel.
The market reaction followed more than two days of lifted hopes and dashed expectations involving the strait. Crude prices plunged more than 9% Friday after Iran said it would fully reopen the strait, which it effectively controls, to commercial traffic.
Tehran reversed that decision and fired on several vessels Saturday after President Donald Trump said a U.S. Navy blockade of Iranian ports would remain in effect. On Sunday, Trump said the U.S. attacked and forcibly seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that allegedly tried to get around the blockade. Iran’s joint military command vowed to respond.
Sunday’s higher prices wiped out much of the declines seen Friday, signaling renewed doubts about how soon ships will again transport the vast amounts oil the world gets from the Middle East.
The US-Israeli war against Iran, now in its eighth week, has created one of the worst global energy crises in decades. Countries in Asia and Europe that import much of their oil from the Gulf have felt the most impact of halted supplies and production cuts, although rapidly rising gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices are affecting businesses and consumers worldwide.
Asked when he thought U.S. motorists would again see gas cost less than $3 a gallon on average, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said prices at the pump might not go down that much until next year.
“But prices have likely peaked, and they’ll start going down,” Wright told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
The price of crude oil — the main ingredient in gasoline — has fluctated dramatically since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, and as Iran retaliated with airstrikes on other Gulf states. Crude traded at roughly $70 a barrel before the conflict, spiked to more than $119 at times, and previously closed Friday at $82.59 for U.S. oil and $90.38 for Brent.
Industry analysts have repeatedly warned that the longer the strait is closed, the worse prices could get.
A fragile, two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is set to expire Wednesday, while escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz puts the fate of new talks to end the war into question.
Even if a lasting deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz emerges, analysts say it could take months for oil shipments to return to normal levels and for fuel prices to go down. Backed-up tanker traffic, shipowners concerned about another sudden escalation, and energy infrastructure damaged during the war are factors that could impede production and shipment volumes from returning to pre-war levels.
A gallon of regular gas cost an average of nearly $4.05 a gallon in the U.S. on Sunday, according to motor club federation AAA. That’s about 8 cents lower than a week ago, but far higher than $2.98 before the war.
Trump warns Iran it ‘can’t blackmail’ US with Hormuz closure
Fox News reports on heightened tensions in the Middle East as Iran’s Revolutionary Guard reaffirms strict control over the Strait of Hormuz and fires on passing ships. President Donald Trump, speaking from the Oval Office, states the US naval blockade will remain in full force. White House correspondent Alex Hogan provides updates on the escalating diplomatic and military standoff.
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Hundreds of commercial tankers are stranded on both sides of the Strait of Hormuz after Iran shut the critical chokepoint on April 18, halting traffic and leaving crews trapped amid reports of gunfire and “traumatic experiences” on board.
The Strait of Hormuz is considered an international waterway under international law, through which ships have the right of transit passage, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz, making it a critical chokepoint for global energy markets, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said Iranian gunboats opened fire on a tanker the same day, while a projectile struck a container vessel, damaging cargo.
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U.S. Central Command said Tuesday that “U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers are among the assets executing a blockade mission impacting Iranian ports.” (CENTCOM)
Audio released by maritime monitoring group TankerTrackers appears to capture the moment a vessel and its crew came under fire while approaching the strait, including a distress call from a crew member.
“Sepah Navy! Motor tanker Sanmar Herald! You gave me clearance to go… you are firing now. Let me turn back!” the crew member can be heard saying in the recording, according to TankerTrackers.
Iranian state media confirmed that shots were fired near vessels to force them to turn back, while the Ministry of External Affairs of the Government of India said the foreign secretary was deeply concerned.
Hapag-Lloyd, the world’s fifth-largest container shipping line, told Fox News Digital that it had activated a crisis team as its crews remain stuck on board vessels in the region.
“We have been working from Friday afternoon until today with the entire crisis team to bring the vessels out — in vain, unfortunately,” said Nils Haupt, senior director of group communications at Hapag-Lloyd AG.
“These events can easily lead to traumatic experiences. There is also a significant risk from sea mines, which has made insuring vessels for passage through the Strait nearly impossible.”
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“The crews are well, but they are becoming increasingly impatient and frustrated. It is very unfortunate that we could not leave today,” he added. “Many ships are still stuck in the Persian Gulf.”
“Our six ships are anchored near the port of Dubai, and all crews hope for an improvement in the situation,” Haupt said.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on April 18 that the strait would remain closed until the U.S. lifts its blockade on Iranian ports, warning ships not to move from anchorage or risk being treated as “enemy” collaborators.
Iran has previously argued that restrictions on its oil exports and shipping amount to “economic warfare,” framing actions in the Strait of Hormuz as a response to foreign pressure on its economy, according to statements from Iranian officials and state media in past incidents.
“Approaching the Strait of Hormuz will be considered cooperation with the enemy, and any violating vessel will be targeted,” the IRGC said in a statement carried by the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
TRUMP ORDERS A BLOCKADE IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ AS TENSIONS WITH IRAN SOAR
Fishing boats dot the sea as cargo ships, in the background, sail through the Arabian Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz off the United Arab Emirates, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP Photo)
The United States imposed the blockade on Iranian ports to pressure Tehran to reopen the strait, with U.S. Central Command saying the measures are being enforced “impartially against all vessels.”
Hapag-Lloyd said its vessels have been stuck for weeks following the initial closure after the outbreak of war with Iran on Feb. 28.
“For us, it is critical that our vessels can pass through the strait soon,” Haupt said.
“We offer all crew members unlimited data so they can video call loved ones and access entertainment. Crews are strong, but after weeks on board there is growing monotony and frustration.”
“One crew experienced a fire on board from bomb fragments. Others have seen missiles or drones near their vessels,” he added.
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“They are resilient, but each additional day makes the situation more difficult, more monotonous, and more stressful.”
President Donald Trump said Iran had agreed not to close the strait again but after the closure, Trump called the situation “blackmail” and said the U.S. would not back down.
Shops and schools shut in northern Israel as residents protested a 10-day ceasefire with Lebanon that took effect on April 16, saying “nothing was achieved”. Israeli officials say operations may continue, with forces still deployed inside southern Lebanon.
Published On 19 Apr 2026
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