Port au-Prince (Haiti), Jan 4 (AP) Some 150 military police officers from Central America have started arriving in Haiti to reinforce the embattled government's fight against violent gangs that have upended daily life for millions on the Caribbean island.

The first deployment of 75 troops from mostly Guatemala and a small number from El Salvador was greeted on Friday at Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince by top Haitian authorities, security officials and the US Ambassador to Haiti, Dennis Hankins.

Also Read | Emirates First 'Airbus A350' Enters Commercial Service, Operating Inaugural Flight From Dubai to Edinburgh.

A second, similarly sized contingent was expected to arrive on Saturday and join the United Nations-backed mission that for months has been struggling to restore order.

Coordinated gang attacks on prisons, police stations and the main international airport have intensified in Haiti since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise. Gangs are estimated to control about 85 per cent of the capital.

Also Read | UK Shocker: Teacher Avoids Jail After Being Convicted For Having Sex With Minor Student in Eltham School.

In what is perhaps the most brazen attack yet, gunmen opened fire on a crowd that gathered on Christmas Eve for the much-anticipated reopening of Haiti's biggest public hospital, which was closed after being rampaged by gangs earlier this year. Two journalists covering the event and a police officer were killed.

Prior to this week's deployment, the international mission seeking to quell the violence was led by around 400 security officers from Kenya. Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin and Chad have also pledged personnel although it isn't clear when they would be sent. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)