State Dept. Denies Leader Was Forced Out of Office
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide asserted Monday that he had been driven from power in Haiti by the United States in “a coup,” an allegation dismissed by the White House as “complete nonsense.” Mr. Aristide, who relayed his accusation by telephone from the Central African Republic to news organizations and members of Congress, contended that he had been kidnapped and forced to leave Haiti at gunpoint. “The allegations that somehow we kidnapped former President Aristide are absolutely baseless, absurd,” said Secretary of State Colin L. Powell. Full Story