SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — On Monday, humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders announced that four of its vehicles were attacked amid an evacuation of staff from a medical facility in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince. This incident unfolds as the city’s gang violence escalates.
The group reported that the assault took place after they opted to halt services at the Turgeau Emergency Center on Saturday, due to the intensifying “brutal street fighting” drawing dangerously near to the hospital. They emphasized that their convoy had been “repeatedly and intentionally fired upon, despite having coordinated with authorities beforehand.”
Although there were no fatalities, staff members sustained minor injuries, disclosed Benoit Vasseur, the mission head in Haiti for Doctors Without Borders. “Currently, continuing operations at the hospital is impossible, but we remain committed to resuming services as soon as the security situation permits it,” he affirmed.
This marks the second occasion in less than four months that operations at the Turgeau Emergency Center have been suspended. The health facility is one of the few in Port-au-Prince that was still operational even as gangs, which now hold control over 85% of the capital, intensify their territorial skirmishes.
According to United Nations reports, gang violence led to more than 5,600 deaths across Haiti last year, rendering over a million people homeless. As instability grows, humanitarian efforts go on amid significant obstacles.
