Rep. Cory Mills rescues 23 Americans, including Mitch Albom, from chaos in Haiti
U.S. Rep. Cory Mills says he has helped 23 Americans exit Port-au-Prince, Haiti, which has fallen into chaos as criminal gangs have overpowered government forces.
"Our team has now successfully rescued and evacuated more Americans than (President Joe) Biden and his entire administration," the Florida Republican claimed in a tweet on X. "Americans deserve support from their government. Not the pattern of abandonment this administration has shown."
Mills did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He told the Washington Examiner he first got involved last week after a request for assistance by U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, a Michigan Republican, on behalf of the Have Faith orphanage, started by author Mitch Albom.
"Thanks to the efforts of Representatives Cory Mills and Lisa McClain and a brave team of pilots, 10 volunteers were able to evacuate Haiti safely via helicopter in the dark and early hours of Tuesday morning," a Have Faith Instagram post from last week reads.
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Mills said he rescued 255 Americans out of Israel after the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas, as well as another evacuation of U.S. citizens from Afghanistan when the military pulled out in 2021.
Mills arranged an escape from secret location
Albom, the author of "Tuesdays With Morrie," wrote in his Detroit Free Press column that Mills arranged an escape from a secret location in the dead of night.
"Go! Go! Go!" Mills ordered the evacuees, as they piled into a helicopter and prayed they wouldn't be fired at by the gangs in control.
"Foreigners and volunteers are forced to find their own way out, with no help from their embassies," Albom wrote. "And trapped in the middle are innocent civilians, millions of them, including 60 precious children at the orphanage I have operated for the last 14 years."
A second Mills mission over the weekend returned 13 others.
US flight rescued 30 Americans from Cap-Haïtien
Albom's message about rescuing more Americans than the Biden administration comes after a U.S. government-chartered flight out of Haiti that brought more than 30 Americans with U.S. passports from Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, to Miami on Sunday.
U.S. Department of State deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said nearly 1,000 Americans have completed a crisis intake form in Haiti, which has been listed as a Level 4 Do Not Travel state since 2020. In what he called a "fluid and quickly evolving situation," Patel said did not offer any promises on plans to charter more flights. He added that the government has "no higher priority than the safety and security of American citizens."
"U.S. citizens should not travel to Haiti and those in Haiti should depart immediately, using commercial or other private transportation options when available and safe to do so," Patel said in a news conference Monday.
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Mills served in Iraq and Afghanistan
Mills is in his second year in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was elected in 2022 to Florida's 7th District, which straddles northern Seminole and southern Volusia counties.
While in the Army, Mills served tours of duty in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo, among other locations. After military service, he co-founded Pacem Solution International LLC and Pacem Defense LLC, which provide intelligence and security in faraway places.
Haiti's Prime Minister resigned amid gang violence
Earlier this month, Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigned following attacks on police and military by heavily armed gangs in the capital city of Port-au-Prince. Gangs have control key parts of the city including the airport, leaving treacherous conditions for Americans wanting to leave.
Henry's temporary tenure began after the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. However, he repeatedly postponed elections due to the ongoing crisis.
Many Haitians grappling with severe violence and poverty have left the nation. 138,000 have sought protection in the U.S. through the Biden administration's humanitarian parole program, which also applies for Cubans, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans.
Flights to Port-au-Prince canceled due to gang violence
Gangs have attacked the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince to stop Henry from returning. Flights into Port-au-Prince have been canceled.
On March 11, 10 Americans including Albom were rescued on a helicopter that flew them over the border to the Dominican Republic.
Many Haitian Americans have wired money to their families who are in financial turmoil and trying to leave the island. Around 1.1 million Americans were born in Haiti or have ancestry to the nation, the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey shows.
Contributing: Lauren Villagran and Eduardo Cuevas
