Canada sending more troops to Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Jan. 18 (UPI) -- More Canadian troops are being sent to Haiti to deal with a deteriorating security situation in the earthquake-ravaged Caribbean island nation, officials said.

Canadian Defense Minister Peter MacKay, describing the situation in Port-au-Prince as "volatile," said 1,000 additional troops from Canadian Forces Base Valcartier in Quebec are heading to Haiti, the Canwest News Service reported.

They will join 1,000 Canadian troops already in Haiti under the command of Brig. Gen. Guy Laroche, a former Afghanistan commander who arrived on the stricken island Saturday.

"The government of Canada feels it has a moral imperative to do everything in its power to help with international relief and stabilization efforts in Haiti," MacKay said.

Canwest said the troops were expected to arrive in about a week.