Haitian authorities announced they had regained control of the main natural gas terminal in the capital Port-au-Prince, ending a gang stranglehold on the vital energy facility.   

  The news follows two weeks of negotiations with Haitian gang leader Jimmy Cherizier to relinquish control of the Varreux terminal, according to politician Dr.  Harrison Ernest, who met with both Cherizier and Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry.   

  Chérizier, also known as “Barbecue”, is the leader of the G9, a federation of twelve Haitian gangs based in Port-au-Prince.   

  “I spoke to Barbeque and told them to leave the terminal because the kids have to go back to school.  And we called on the government to do its part to make sure that there is fuel and that the fuel has to get to the customer,” said Ernest, a Haitian doctor and politician from the country’s Konstwi Lavi party.   

  Konstwi Lavi “plays the role of mediator between the government and the gang that blockaded the gas terminal,” Ernest added.   

  “We’ve been working for two weeks with the government and the gangs to unblock the fuel.”   

  The Haitian government has denied negotiating with the G9 to reopen the gas terminal, although an adviser to Henry told CNN that the Caribbean nation’s leader did meet with Ernest.   

  “We don’t deal with gangs and we don’t negotiate with gangs, we want schools to reopen and economic activities to revive as soon as possible.  The Prime Minister met with (Ernest) but they did not engage in any gang negotiations on our behalf,” said Special Adviser Jean Junior Joseph.   

  Haitian National Police spokesman Gary Desrosiers confirmed that the Varreux terminal is now under police control.   

  The terminal, located in southwest Port-au-Prince, supplies most of Haiti’s oil.  It has been blockaded by members of the G9 gang for the past six weeks, blocking access to fuel in the country.   

  The Haitian government requested international military assistance nearly a month ago as it grappled with intertwined health, energy and security issues.   

  Anti-government protests have also paralyzed the country, with schools, businesses and public transport across the country mostly closed.   

  Since August 22, Haitians have been demonstrating against chronic gang violence, poverty, food insecurity, inflation and fuel shortages.​