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Haitian authorities have reportedly temporarily suspended the operating license of the\u00a0Church of the Pool of Bethesda<\/a>\u00a0in Caradeux after the congregation\u2019s pastor, Marcorel Zidor, recently led hundreds of his members into a deadly confrontation with a violent gang then blamed the deaths of at least seven of them on their lack of faith.<\/p>\n Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship Jean Victor G\u00e9n\u00e9us announced the suspension of the church\u2019s operating license,\u00a0according to Haiti Libre<\/a>, but it doesn\u2019t appear to have kept the church from operating.\u00a0<\/p>\n The church’s\u00a0YouTube channel<\/a>\u00a0shows that since Zidor, who is popularly known as Pastor Marco, convinced his followers to engage in the deadly confrontation with the gang controlling a suburb of Port-au-Prince called Canaan, has streamed church events online four times since Aug. 25. A church announcement noted that one event is planned for\u00a0Sept. 9<\/a>.<\/p>\n Many of his followers also appear devoted to him as they left many encouraging messages online showing their support of his ministry.<\/p>\n In an earlier\u00a0press statement<\/a>, Haiti\u2019s Police Chief Frantz Elb\u00e9 said Zidor, who is popularly known as Pastor Marco, led several hundred of his followers, some of whom were armed with sticks and machetes, to overthrow the gang in Canaan.<\/p>\n Elb\u00e9 said police tried to stop the protest by setting up security perimeters and warning church officials that confronting the gang members was not a good idea, but they ignored the warnings.\u00a0In an earlier report<\/a>, The Christian Post noted that Zidor had convinced his parishioners that they could not be harmed by the bullets from the gangsters, and they believed him.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were determined because the pastor told them, \u2018They will not get shot,\u2019\u201d Elb\u00e9 said during a subsequent press conference.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a belief in this crowd; there was a determination,\u201d he added. \u201cThe police did everything they could to prevent the crowd from arriving at its destination.\u201d<\/p>\n A video\u00a0posted on X<\/a>, formerly known as the platform Twitter, shows gang members opening fire on the church members with what appears to be the lifeless bodies of a man and woman from the protests at the end of a trail of blood in the unpaved streets of the squatter community. Other\u00a0videos posted on YouTube<\/a>\u00a0show several members who were also kidnapped. Zidor allegedly abandoned his flock on a motorcycle, Haiti Libre reported.<\/p>\n In an interview with Mega Radio, cited by\u00a0Reuters<\/a>, Zidor said the members of his flock who died after they were shot had died because they “went to hide” in houses.\u00a0<\/p>\n “Those who died are those who went to hide in the houses,” he said. “Ninety-five percent of my parishioners were being shot at, none of them got hit.\u201d<\/p>\n Courtesy of\u00a0The Christian Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n