The move comes as Congress attempts to oust Prime Minister Fils-Emeh and the United States recently deployed warships in waters near the Haitian capital.
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Published February 7, 2026
Haiti’s Interim Presidential Council handed over power to U.S.-backed Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Eme after nearly two years of chaotic rule marked by rampant gang violence that left thousands of people dead.
Given Haiti’s volatile political situation, the transfer of power between the nine-member transitional council and 54-year-old businessman Fils-Eme took place on Saturday under tight security.
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“Prime Minister, I know that at this historic moment you realize the depth of your responsibility to this country,” Council President Laurent Saint-Cyr told Fils-Aimé, the only politician currently holding executive power in the country.
In late January, several council members said they wanted Filsueme removed, and the United States announced the revocation of visas for four unidentified council members and a cabinet minister.
Days before the council’s dissolution, the United States sent a warship and two U.S. Coast Guard vessels to waters near Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince, where gangs control 90% of the territory.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressed the “importance” of Fils-Eme’s continued tenure to “fight terrorist organizations and stabilize the island.”
The City Council’s plan to fire Mr. Filsueme for undisclosed reasons appeared to have stalled when he resigned in a public ceremony Saturday.
Mr. Fils-Eimé now faces the difficult task of holding the first general elections in a decade.
This year’s election is unlikely
The Interim Presidential Council was established in 2024 as the country’s highest executive body in response to a political crisis dating back to the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021.
It quickly developed into infighting, questions over membership, and allegations of corruption that overwhelmingly failed to accomplish its mission of quelling gang violence and improving the lives of Haitians.
Just six months after its formation, the organization sacked Prime Minister Garry Conneill and elected Fils-Eimme to replace him.
Despite being tasked with creating a framework for federal elections, Congress ended up postponing a series of votes that were supposed to elect a new president by February.
Tentative dates for August and December have been announced, but many believe it is unlikely that elections and run-offs will be held this year.
Gangs killed about 6,000 people in Haiti last year, according to the United Nations. Approximately 1.4 million people, or 10 percent of the population, have been forced to flee due to violence.
The United Nations has authorized the deployment of international security forces to help police restore order, but more than two years later, fewer than 1,000 troops, mostly Kenyan police, have been deployed. The United Nations has said it aims to have 5,500 troops in the country by the middle of this year, or by November at the latest.
