'We stand in solidarity with the Haitian people': Jackson Lee expresses support for Haiti following president's assassination

U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Houston) has voiced her condolences and support for the people of Haiti following the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.

Haitian Acting Prime Minister Clause Joseph said that on July 7, gunmen broke into Moïse's home and fatally shot the 53-year-old president, NPR News reported. His wife, First Lady Martine Moïse, also sustained injuries in the incident, but survived and was rushed to the hospital.

"We stand in solidarity with the Haitian people, who have suffered so much devastation, injury and heartbreak in recent years," Jackson Lee wrote in a July 7 Twitter post. "I appeal to them for peace and calm in this time and urge they hold fast to the noble aspiration for a democratic and economically prosperous Haiti."

According to a statement released by Joseph, the attack occurred at around 1 a.m. by a group of gunmen that remain unidentified. Some of the attackers reportedly spoke Spanish.

Haitian police officers said that they killed four of the gunmen during the attack and later arrested two suspects, CBS News reported.

Moïse officially took office in February of 2017, following the resignation of previous Haitian president Michel Martelly, according to FOX News. Under his leadership, crime has proliferated and the country still suffers from widespread poverty as it continues to recover from Hurricane Matthew in 2016 and a 2010 earthquake.

Haiti was unable to hold credible parliamentary elections two years ago, so the Parliament was dissolved and Moïse had been ruling by decree ever since. 

Earlier this year in February, there were widespread calls for his resignation from Haitian citizens and opposition leaders dissatisfied with his leadership. They said that Moïse's term legally ended in February 2021, the five-year anniversary of the day his predecessor stepped down and Moïse began a one-year provisional presidency, but Moïse and supporters argued that his five-year term officially began on his swearing in date in February 2017, which would have his term ending in early 2022.

Leaders of groups opposing Moïse's rule issued a statement condemning the attacks saying, "In this painful circumstance, the political forces of the opposition condemn with utmost rigor this heinous crime that is at odds with democratic principles." 

Haiti was scheduled to hold general elections later this year.