U.S. troop carriers and Humvees mounted with machine guns and missile launchers rumbled through the streets and stood watch at government ministries and French troops in jeeps went on patrol. The capital returned to its normal chaos, with traffic jams and shouting vendors.

Banks reopened after two weeks of gunbattles, looting and barricades forced President Jean-Bertrand Aristide into exile. The government says a month-long rebel uprising cost Haiti about $300 million, roughly equivalent to its yearly budget.

But many city slums, strongholds of feared pro-Aristide supporters known as chimeres who are armed with automatic weapons and machetes, were still too dangerous to enter. Many feared reprisals and there were reports of several lynchings of Aristide supporters.

The rebels that helped oust Aristide appeared to have withdrawn from the capital's streets, replaced by police.

"We could have taken power. We had the people and the force. We haven't done it," said rebel leader Guy Philippe, who under U.S. pressure announced he would disarm his army.

Dressed in civilian clothes rather than his customary military fatigues, Philippe raised up his empty arms when asked if he had any weapons. "God is my protection," he told reporters.

For some Haitians, the foreign intervention came too late.

"People are still killing each other," said Jacques Monbrun, 64, as he waited outside the closed Justice Ministry where he works as a bookkeeper.

More than 100 people were killed in the rebel uprising that began on Feb. 5 when an anti-Aristide armed gang took control of Gonaives, Haiti's fourth-largest city. The rebellion spread to other cities and towns in the north.

State of Emergency
Aristide left the country on Sunday and turned up in the Central African Republic, where he claimed he was kidnapped by U.S. forces. The U.S. government has denied the allegation.

Philippe said he would return to Cap Haitien by today, his rebel stronghold and Haiti's second biggest city.

But gunbattles erupted on Wednesday in the capital after police and rebels hunted for Aristide supporters in La Saline shantytown. Local radio reported three people were killed.

Prime Minister Yvon Neptune has declared a State of Emergency, allowing the Government to suspend some constitutional rights such as press freedoms and the right to demonstrate.

Chile sent 130 troops to Haiti overnight, joining more than 1,700 American, French and Canadians troops.

"They should have sent the (foreign) military before Aristide fled. Now (looters) have burned everything," said Walter St. Fort, a 31-year-old auto parts dealer, standing by the smoking ruins of a government building.

Nearby, French military jeeps mounted with machine guns patrolled downtown, where streets were ankle deep in sewage and garbage in places. U.S. light-armored vehicles guarded the National Palace, once the symbol of Aristide's power.

Hundreds stopped to watch a U.S. military convoy move past. "The Americans take the country!" an onlooker shouted.

The streets appeared to be returning to normal. People tossed buckets of water on smoldering piles of debris and swept up garbage. Ice cream sellers trundled coolers along the sidewalks and men pushed carts bearing huge blocks of ice.

Food Arrives
Easing a critical shortage, the World Food Program (WFP) loaded a truck with food for an orphanage as part of a plan to distribute goods to 105,000 people at health centers and schools in the next two weeks.

"But security will have to improve to reach everybody," WFP official Alejandro Chicheri cautioned.

Outside the U.S. Embassy, several dozen people clamored for jobs. Some said they had worked for the United States during its last military intervention in Haiti.

"I hope the Americans bring jobs in quantity, money for helping people," Alexandre Pierre, 35, an unemployed manager.

Further gaining the initiative, the interim President, Supreme Court Chief Justice Boniface Alexandre, named a new Police Chief, Leonce Charles, a respected U.S.-trained former Coast Guard Chief.

The restructuring of Haitian National Police command was a key demand of Aristide's political foes. The force numbers about 4,000 poorly trained officers.

Philippe on Tuesday declared himself "military chief" of Haiti's security forces, raising fears militias could soon run the country.