Haitian President Jovenel Moïse has been assassinated, interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph announced Wednesday.
Moïse was killed at his home about 1 a.m. local time by a group of assassins, Joseph said in the statement.
Moise’s wife, Martine Marie was injured in the attack, the statement said.
The attackers were described as Spanish-speaking.
Joseph said the gunmen broke into Mr Moise’s home and shot dead the 53-year-old president.
He said that Haiti remained under the control of the police and armed forces.
‘All measures are taken to guarantee the continuity of the State and protect the Nation,’ he added.
Jovenel, a former entrepreneur became the 42nd President of Haiti in 2016.
But of late, his country had been engulfed in political unrest and calls for his resignation became a crisis.
The assassination followed an aborted coup plot in February.