Police are trying to reach a gang-controlled area in central Haiti where at least 16 people have been killed in a series of attacks over the weekend. While so far only 16 fatalities have been confirmed by police, a local journalist spoke of 'around 20 dead', while one human rights group warned that the number of fatalities could be as high as 70. Local rights activists said the Gran Grif gang, one of Haiti's most feared criminal organizations, was behind the deadly attacks, which they said had caused 6,000 people to flee.
Gang violence has ravaged the Caribbean country for years and the multinational police force sent to contain it has struggled to enter areas where gangs hold sway. Residents of the rural area of Jean-Denis, near the town of Petite-Rivière de l'Artibonite, reported that a first attack took place in the early hours of Sunday. They told Haitian news site Le Nouvelliste that gang members had 'arrived from all directions', setting houses alight and shooting at those fleeing from the flames. Survivors described finding bodies strewn on the road the next morning. A second deadly attack reportedly occurred on Monday.
So far, 16 bodies have been taken to nearby morgues but with gang members still roaming the area, many locals are too afraid to collect the remains of those killed. The ombudsman's office said at least another 19 people had sustained bullet wounds, adding that the continued presence of gang members was making it difficult to verify the number of victims. Romain Le Cour Grandmaison, director of the Haiti Observatory at the non-governmental organization Global Initiative, noted that the attack seemed to have been highly coordinated with roads reportedly blocked to prevent police from intervening.
Criticism has been mounting over the authorities' failure to act on advance warnings about the attacks. The attack is believed to have been led by a commander known as 'Ti Kenken', who formerly led a vigilante group designed to protect locals from gangs but later joined Gran Grif. There are increasing concerns about the implications of such alliances for civilian safety, as well as the risks of escalating violence and further fragmentation in the power dynamics within gang-controlled territories.
This is not the first instance of violence directed at the residents of Artibonite, a primarily agricultural region. In October 2024, a similar deadly rampage by Gran Grif raised the death toll significantly, underscoring the persistent threat posed by gangs like Gran Grif, designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. in May of last year. U.S. officials expressed alarm over the situation, citing Gran Grif as the primary source of instability and violence in Haiti.
The multi-national police force deployed in 2024 to support Haiti's security struggle continues to grapple with the challenges posed by heavily armed gang factions. A new, larger UN-backed Gang Suppression Force is expected to replace the current force with officers set to arrive in April.
Gang violence has ravaged the Caribbean country for years and the multinational police force sent to contain it has struggled to enter areas where gangs hold sway. Residents of the rural area of Jean-Denis, near the town of Petite-Rivière de l'Artibonite, reported that a first attack took place in the early hours of Sunday. They told Haitian news site Le Nouvelliste that gang members had 'arrived from all directions', setting houses alight and shooting at those fleeing from the flames. Survivors described finding bodies strewn on the road the next morning. A second deadly attack reportedly occurred on Monday.
So far, 16 bodies have been taken to nearby morgues but with gang members still roaming the area, many locals are too afraid to collect the remains of those killed. The ombudsman's office said at least another 19 people had sustained bullet wounds, adding that the continued presence of gang members was making it difficult to verify the number of victims. Romain Le Cour Grandmaison, director of the Haiti Observatory at the non-governmental organization Global Initiative, noted that the attack seemed to have been highly coordinated with roads reportedly blocked to prevent police from intervening.
Criticism has been mounting over the authorities' failure to act on advance warnings about the attacks. The attack is believed to have been led by a commander known as 'Ti Kenken', who formerly led a vigilante group designed to protect locals from gangs but later joined Gran Grif. There are increasing concerns about the implications of such alliances for civilian safety, as well as the risks of escalating violence and further fragmentation in the power dynamics within gang-controlled territories.
This is not the first instance of violence directed at the residents of Artibonite, a primarily agricultural region. In October 2024, a similar deadly rampage by Gran Grif raised the death toll significantly, underscoring the persistent threat posed by gangs like Gran Grif, designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. in May of last year. U.S. officials expressed alarm over the situation, citing Gran Grif as the primary source of instability and violence in Haiti.
The multi-national police force deployed in 2024 to support Haiti's security struggle continues to grapple with the challenges posed by heavily armed gang factions. A new, larger UN-backed Gang Suppression Force is expected to replace the current force with officers set to arrive in April.
