Haiti's capital in chaos as rebels close in

Pro-government mobs looting the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince have withdrawn from the streets after a plea from President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Though violence subsided on Saturday, doctors said the morgue at Port-au-Prince’s only hospital was full, and that 25-30 bodies were brought in since Friday – bringing the death toll to more than 100 in Haiti’s four-week rebellion.

The United States urged both sides in the conflict to end the violence, which broke out on February 5.

In a statement late on Saturday, the White House called on Aristide to ”re-examine his position”, but did not call for his resignation.

The statement was critical of looting and other violence it attributed to Aristide supporters and reiterated that the United States was prepared to support multilateral efforts to restore order.

Rebel leader Guy Philippe, speaking to The Associated Press from a key northern city in his control, said his fighters would not attack the capital “for a day or two”.

Airlines including Air France, American Airlines and Air Jamaica have cancelled flights to and from Haiti. There are an estimated 20,000 foreigners in the country.

Underscoring the growing panic, 200 people sought places on a nine-seat plane headed to the Dominican Republic. France, Brazil, Canada and the United States sent military planes with soldiers on Saturday to evacuate their citizens.

U.S. Coast Guard cutters, meanwhile, intercepted Haitians who fled on boats.

Aristide, Haiti’s first democratically elected president, held fast in his refusal to leave office until his term expires in February 2006 – defying calls from the United States and France to step down.

“Will I resign? No, I will not resign,” he said. “I will fulfil my turn and I will not allow criminals and terrorists to take over.”

The rebels have gathered hundreds of volunteers as they have chased Haiti’s outgunned police force from a score of towns and overrun more than half of the country. Many of those killed in recent weeks were police officers.

Rebel leader Philippe said that while his forces will continue to converge near the capital, he will hold off attacking in response to the U.S. appeals, which he said he read on the Internet.

The American appeal for an end to violence was issued on Friday night by U.S. Ambassador James Foley in a statement to reporters. There was no direct contact between U.S. officials and rebels, both sides made clear.

Some 2,200 U.S. Marines were put on alert as Pentagon officials weighed the possibility of sending troops to waters off Haiti to guard against any flood of refugees and to protect the estimated 20,000 Americans in the Caribbean country.

A former priest, Aristide was wildly popular but has lost support after flawed legislative elections in 2000. International donors froze aid and as poverty deepened, opposition grew. Aristide denies charges that he uses police and armed militants to crush opposition.

The international community – led by the United States, France and Canada - has insisted that Haiti’s government and opposition reach a political settlement before foreign forces intervene.