U.N. unanimously passes Haiti sanctions, targets gang leader

FILE PHOTO: Former police officer Jimmy "Barbecue" Cherizier, leader of the 'G9' coalition, gives a press tour of the La Saline shanty area of Port-au-Prince, Haiti November 3, 2021. REUTERS/Ralph Tedy Erol/File Photo

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -The U.N. Security Council on Friday approved sanctions allowing it to impose an asset freeze, travel ban and arms embargo on anyone who threatens the peace or stability of Haiti, naming the Caribbean country's most powerful gangster as its first target.

The 15-member council voted unanimously to adopt the resolution, which imposes the sanctions on gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, a former policeman known locally by his alias "Barbecue."