1991 Haitian coup d'état

The 1991 Haitian coup d'état resulted in the overthrow of Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the democratically-elected president of Haiti, by a contingent of the Haitian military led by General Raoul Cédras and Chief of National Police Michel François. The coup began on 29 September 1991, when Haitian troops mutinied, launching a violent takeover that involved attacking Aristide's residence, committing massacres, and ultimately forcing Aristide into exile in Venezuela. Cédras announced the military's takeover on 30 September.

Prior to the coup, beginning in 1957, Haiti was ruled by the dictatorships of François and Jean-Claude Duvalier. Amidst political violence and growing poverty, an opposition movement began to form. Aristide arose as a prominent figure within this movement, participating in the protests that forced Jean-Claude to flee Haiti in 1986. After Jean-Claude's overthrow, Haiti was controlled by a series of military-dominated governments, but popular movements such as Aristide's Lavalas (transl. 'Avalanche') continued to mobilize, leading to Aristide's victory in the 1990–91 Haitian general election. As president, Aristide implemented populist and social democratic reforms focused on aiding Haiti's poor, which generated significant opposition from the military, wealthy elites, and the United States.

After the coup, the military regime unleashed widespread violence, killing thousands of Aristide supporters, displacing hundreds of thousands, targeting independent media and political opponents, and driving a mass exodus of Haitian refugees to the United States by boat. Aristide, with the support of Venezuelan President Carlos Andrés Pérez, mobilized international organizations, including the Organization of American States (OAS) and United Nations (UN), to condemn the military regime. These organizations imposed sanctions on Haiti that severely impacted its economy. Despite internal opposition from agencies like the CIA, which allegedly undermined Aristide's return and supported the anti-Aristide Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haïti (FRAPH), the United States ultimately threatened military action against the regime and, after a last-minute diplomatic effort, led Operation Uphold Democracy to successfully remove it and reinstate Aristide.