Haiti Thwarts Coup Attempt by 4 Gunmen
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PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Commandos seized Haiti’s National Palace in a coup attempt Monday, killing four people before police retook the building. Three other people, including one of the attackers, died as the violence spread.
Government supporters armed with machetes and sticks struck back by burning the homes and offices of opposition leaders.
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and his wife were unharmed in their home about three miles from the palace, National Palace spokesman Jacques Maurice said.
The violence prompted the U.S. Embassy to close its doors and urge Americans in Haiti to stay at home. Airlines canceled flights to the impoverished Caribbean nation.
Police killed one gunman before regaining control of the palace, said palace security chief Jean Oriel. They later arrested a suspected attacker, while the rest escaped. Oriel said the gunman who died, like others in the group, was dressed in the uniform of Haiti’s former army.
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