Aristide leaves country in chaos

By Claire Marshall BBC correspondent in Port au Prince

As the barricades burned in the capital city around him, and with a rebel army on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince, Jean-Bertrand Aristide fought for his political life as Haitian president right until the end.

Mr Aristide struggled until the end to cling on to power

Alone, he negotiated with senior US officials until the early hours of this morning, insisting that he should remain until the end of his elected term in 2006.

Just hours before, he had gone on local television to say that his resignation was "out of the question".

But, the pressure from the international community was too much, and he was escorted to the main airport by US Marines at dawn.

According to one source, he resisted even while going up the stairs to the aircraft alongside his wife and some 40 aides.

'Smoke is billowing'

He has left behind a country in chaos. The streets of Port-au-Prince are lawless.

Most people are holed up inside their homes, while armed gangs roam the streets. Petrol stations are ablaze, and police stations are being ransacked.

THE ARISTIDE YEARS 1990: Haiti's first democratically elected president 1991: Overthrown in military coup; exiled to US 1994: Reinstated; forbidden from standing for second consecutive term 2000: Wins contested elections 2004 - Jan: Haiti celebrates 200 years of independence, amid growing political protests Early Feb:Exiled rebel leaders cross back into Haiti; capture north of country 29 Feb: Aristide leaves Haiti

There are regular bursts of gunfire heard over the city, and smoke is billowing into the skies over the presidential palace.

People are not sure yet whether or not to celebrate.

One man told the BBC, "This is terrible. Now we have no leader, and we have two groups at war with each other."

Another said, "Jean-Bertrand Aristide is solely responsible for undoing this presidency. He armed people which created a very tense situation - he had no choice but to go."

Speaking from outside a house in a suburb of the city, listening intently to the radio for the latest news, another woman said, "This is good news for everybody. The situation here couldn't have been sustained.

"Things may not be better today, but at least things may now have a chance to get better in the future".

Power vacuum

Prime Minister Yvon Neptune said in a news conference that President Aristide had left to 'avoid a bloodbath', but added that these were "dangerous times for Haiti".

Concern is growing over widespread lawlessness

The houses of two senior government members have already been targeted by looters. Many are now said to be converging at the embassy of the Dominican Republic looking for an escape route.

Helicopters are currently swarming over the embassy building - apparently evacuating people.

Adverts put up in one hotel in the capital say that seats on a helicopter out of Haiti to Santo Domingo can be bought for $2,500.

The biggest fear for people here is what will come out of the current power vacuum. There is no obvious leader to succeed Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

The remnants of his government have announced that a Supreme Court Judge, Boniface Alexandre, will take over as president.

According to the Haitian constitution, this needs to be ratified by Congress. However the Haitian congress was disbanded earlier this year as no elections had been held to select its members.

Armed gangs

On Monday, French troops landed in Port-au-Prince to join scores of US and Canadian soldiers in a UN-backed international force to help restore order.

HAVE YOUR SAY The departure of President Aristide will leave a vacuum that will be very hard to fill Georges, Cayes, Haiti Send us your comments

Reports quoting US Secretary of State Colin Powell say that up to 1,000 US troops could be deployed. The people living here hope that the force won't be too late.

One man said to the BBC; "The Americans really have to take matters into their own hands now.

"We have heavily armed gangs in the streets, which is not a good thing. The security situation here needs to be addressed straight away".