AFP

Around 1,000 Kenyan police officers are set to be deployed to Haiti in a bid to combat raging gang violence.

Last year, Kenya volunteered to lead a multinational security force in the troubled Caribbean nation.

However, in January the Kenyan High Court blocked the plan, ruling the government did not have the authority to deploy police to other countries without an agreement.

On Thursday, Haiti’s PM arrived in the East African state to salvage the plan.

In January, a UN envoy said that gang violence in Haiti had reached “a critical point”, with nearly 5,000 deaths reported last year.

Along with the Kenyan officers, the Bahamas has committed 150 personnel. Jamaica and the state of Antigua & Barbuda have said they are willing to help, while the US has pledged £158m ($200m) to support the deployment.

Earlier this week, Benin offered 2,000 troops.

In the statement on Friday, Kenyan President William Ruto said he and Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry had signed an agreement and discussed the next steps to enable the fast-tracking of the deployment.

But violence has escalated in Port au Prince since Mr Henry departed the Haitian capital, with a prominent gang leader declaring a coordinated attack by armed groups to oust the prime minister.

Reports say the airport has been attacked and multiple airlines have cancelled flights.