Crowds cheer Haiti rebels as US troops arrive
The tumultuous scene in the La Plaine suburb came as American and French marines in Port-au-Prince prepared to fan out and protect key sites.
Mr Aristide, the former president, who left office on Sunday amid pressure from Haiti's political opposition, the rebels and the US and France, arrived in the Central African Republic for "a few days," according to state radio.
Mr Aristide said those who overthrew him had "cut down the tree of peace," but "it will grow again". The convoy of more than 70 rebels commanded by former assistant police chief Guy Philippe had headed out from the western town of Gonaives before dawn, passing scenes of death and destruction along the way.
In the town of St Marc, which rebels had attacked early in the three-week-old uprising but then was retaken by government forces, the convoy rolled by a roadblock where three charred bodies lay in the road.
The rebel vehicles had mechanical trouble during the drive, delaying their arrival in the capital. Mr Philippe's bulletproof SUV broke down and he hopped into a truck.
Asked what his intentions were in the capital, Mr Philippe told a reporter: "We're going to make sure the palace is clean for the president ... that there is no threat there."
He was referring to Supreme Court Justice Boniface Alexandre, who on Sunday said he was taking control of the government as called for by the constitution.
Mr Aristide's departure sparked a rampage through the streets of Port-au-Prince by angry pro-Aristide gangs armed with machetes and guns. At least 12 deaths and many more injuries were reported.
Widespread looting targeted warehouses and banks. People ran through the streets carrying suitcases of bank notes. But a dusk- till-dawn curfew appeared to be holding, with sporadic firing into the night. The crisis has been brewing since Mr Aristide's party swept flawed legislative elections in 2000, prompting international donors to freeze millions of dollars in aid.
Opponents accused Mr Aristide of breaking promises to help the poor, allowing corruption fuelled by drug trafficking and masterminding attacks on opponents by armed gangs charges the president denied. The discontent turned violent three weeks ago as rebels began driving police from northern towns and cities.
Meanwhile, the first contingent of marines hit the streets to quell the looting and gun battles that erupted when Mr Aristide fled his impoverished Caribbean nation, his presidency cut short violently for the second time. He was exiled by a military coup in 1991 during his first term.
"We are here to protect US interests and to help with the security of the Haitian people," a marine captain said at the airport in Port-au-Prince where US troops arrived and unloaded Humvees and other military gear.
President George W Bush ordered the deployment of US marines to serve as the vanguard of a multinational security force. It was the third major deployment of US troops to Haiti in the past century. Ten years ago, President Bill Clinton sent 20,000 marines to restore Mr Aristide to power after he had been ousted in a coup.
More than 120 French troops arrived yesterday, and Canada, which has about 50 troops in Haiti, said it could send another 100 at short notice. Brazil is expected to contribute to the force, given an initial three-month mandate.
The rebels, led by the leader of a death squad that terrorised Haiti during Mr Aristide's first exile, said they would lay down their arms and end their 24-day uprising in the poorest country in the Americas.
The rebellion, capping months of political tension, began in the western city of Gonaives, led by a street gang that once supported Mr Aristide.
It spread with rebels taking Cap Haitien, Haiti's second largest city, a week ago.
The death toll rose to nearly 80 as opponents of the president hunted down his dreaded "chimeres" street toughs armed by Mr Aristide to enforce his will in Haiti's sprawling slums.
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