Soldiers have been deployed to defend the airport in the Haitian capital from an assault by armed gangs.

BBC News says witnesses reported hearing gunshots in the vicinity of Toussaint Louverture Airport as security forces clashed with armed men.

The gangs’ aim is to prevent the return to Haiti of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who left Haiti last week to attend a regional summit in Guyana.

From there, he reportedly travelled to Kenya to sign a deal on the deployment of a multinational police force to Haiti.

Violence has spiralled in his absence, with the gangs demanding his resignation.