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Some acts of violence in Haiti have hindered rescue workers trying to help earthquake victims, a top official leading the US government’s relief efforts said.

General Ken Keen of the US Southern Command. “We’ve had incidents of violence that impede our ability to support the government of Haiti and answer the challenges that this country faces,’’ he said.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – A Spanish military helicopter crashed in rugged terrain in Haiti on Friday, killing the four soldiers on board, the United Nations said.The aircraft, identified by Spanish media as a Bell AB-212, crashed in the Fond Verrettes area about 30 miles (50 kilometers) from Port-au-Prince near Haiti’s border with the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti.

All those aboard were found dead after Spanish and U.S. military teams reached the site, U.N. peacekeeping mission spokesman George Ola-Davies said.Spain’s Defense Ministry said the chopper was one of four based on a Spanish navy amphibious ship, the Castilla.

Spain has about 450 soldiers in Haiti helping with aid and reconstruction after the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake that the Haitian government says killed about 230,000 people.The Spanish troops are not attached to the more than 9,000-strong U.N. peacekeeping mission.

The crash site is near the mountain where a U.N. surveillance airplane crashed in October, killing all 11 Jordanian and Uruguayan peacekeepers aboard.

The day after the quake, Haiti’s president, René Préval, called the destruction “unimaginable.” The quake left the country in shambles, without electricity or phone service. Governments and private groups from Beijing to Grand Rapids pledged assistance, but the extent of the destruction — and Haiti’s shaky infrastructure before the quake — meant aid efforts faced steep obstacles. With little food and water to be had, thousands of residents of the capital, Port-au-Prince, where the destruction was centered, fled the city to seek refuge with relatives in the countryside.Dead bodies and big divets ruined the roads.

Canada will spend up to $12 million to build a temporary home for the Haitian government.Stephen Harper promises that the pressures of fighting a $56-billion Canadian deficit will not interfere with his promise to assist in the long-term reconstruction of Haiti.

A book featuring short stories contributed by authors from around the world with the profits going to victims of the Haiti earthquake went on sale on Wednesday. Futhermore, Haiti has two relief campaigns under way: a massive, lumbering international operation comprising U.N. agencies, foreign military and hundreds of private aid organizations; and the collective efforts of individuals acting on their own in frustration at what they see as shortcomings in the international response.

BET held a live telethon in support of Haiti. Help for Haiti (S.O.S.) featured performances by Wyclef, Chris Brown, Justin Beiber, Mary J. Blige and a host of other artists, with appearances by Mike Tyson, Bill Clinton and more.

Haiti occupies an area roughly the size of Maryland on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Nearly all of the 8.7 million residents are of African descent and speak Creole and French. The capital is Port-au-Prince.The country is, by a significant margin, the poorest in the Western Hemisphere, with four out of five people living in poverty and more than half in abject poverty.Haiti needs jobs, a particular challenge in the current economic climate. Haitians often seek work in the United States, but that safety valve has been squeezed given the recession. With some 900,000 youths expected to come into the job market in the next five years, dismal prospects are the main threat to stability.

Still, thousands of Haitian children remain in orphanages.  United Nations officials estimate there may be one million unaccompanied or orphaned kids who lost a parent in  Haiti.

President Obama told U.S. House Democrats at a retreat that he “will not put up with any excuses for us not doing the very best in this time of tragedy” in Haiti. The initial $100 million in aid to Haiti would be “for the basics” like life-saving equipment and food, and the U.S.’s investment will grow as Haiti rebuilds, Obama said.

A devastating earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale struck Haiti on 12 January 2010, killing an estimated 50,000 and affecting at least one million people. There has been an estimated 380,000 orphans. Redcross is accepting donations, for more info you can visit  http://www.redcross.org.uk/donatesection.asp?id=77029 

Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere and the quake has had a massive impact on a population already reeling from other recent disasters.

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