In a tragic wave of violence, over 260 individuals lost their lives following a series of gang attacks on two communities in the Haitian capital, as revealed in a recent report by the United Nations political mission in Haiti. The document scrutinized the delayed response from local authorities.
The initial assault occurred in late January in Kenscoff, located at the southern boundary of Port-au-Prince’s metropolitan area.
Haiti’s military and police, alongside a U.N.-supported mission spearheaded by Kenyan police, reportedly took five hours to respond after receiving intelligence about the attack. This delay, the report suggests, might indicate a “lack of alignment” between Haiti’s National Police and the government.
“The sequence of events in Kenscoff seems to reflect a failure of security forces to adequately prevent the initial attacks and ensure the swift deployment of specialized police units, even in light of reports signaling an imminent gang threat,” the U.N. mission stated.
Alarming statistics show that at least 31 individuals lost their lives, 27 were injured, and approximately 70 homes were torched before security forces could intervene and drive back the gangs, neutralizing at least 23 assailants, according to the mission.
On that same day, an additional gang attack claimed at least 30 civilian lives in the Carrefour neighborhood in the metro area’s western region.
From January 27 to March 27, the report documented 262 fatalities and 66 injured individuals in both Kenscoff and areas within Carrefour.
“This scenario unveiled the persistent fractures and tensions that exist between the prime minister and the police chief, as well as the lack of a coordinated state response to the gang menace,” noted Diego Da Rin, an analyst with the International Crisis Group.
The events also displayed the police’s difficulty in managing and verifying threats to hinder potential attacks, added Da Rin.
Efforts to obtain comments from Haiti’s National Police spokesperson were unsuccessful.
Between January and March, among those slain were 147 alleged gang members and a defenseless one-month-old infant, whom gunmen heartlessly tossed into the fire during a raid, according to BINUH, the U.N. mission.
The assaults rendered over 3,000 local residents homeless, with gangs incinerating more than 190 residences and sexually assaulting at least seven women and girls, inclusive of a 41-year-old breastfeeding woman, the report added.
Gangs meticulously strategized the attacks, as disclosed in the report, by covertly hiding arms and ammunition in barrels typically used for water and fuel. These barrels were then transported unnoticed on donkeys through surrounding hillsides.
Gang atrocities were marked by extreme savagery aimed at terrorizing the populace, the report further noted.
“They executed men, women, and children within their homes and shot fleeing individuals on roads and pathways,” the report stated.
Moreover, from January 1 to March 27, the conflict claimed over 1,500 lives countrywide, with 572 individuals sustaining injuries, as documented by BINUH.
Recently, two journalists were also reported missing amidst the mayhem. Jean Christophe Collègue, a former Voice of America correspondent, saw his home set ablaze and his whereabouts remain unknown, the Association of Haitian Journalists lamented.
Furthermore, a social media video surfaced showing the abduction of Radio Ginen journalist Israël Roger Claudy and his sibling by gang members, the association warned.
“Every journalist who disappears or is killed, and every media outlet vandalized or burned, signifies an affront to democracy,” the association stated.
With gangs believed to dominate 85% of Port-au-Prince, it is widely felt that the city has already fallen, according to Jake Johnston, international research director at the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington.
“For most people, that line was crossed a long time ago,” Johnston remarked.
On April 2, throngs of protesters advanced toward the offices of the prime minister and the transitional presidential council, demanding an end to gang-induced violence. The demonstrators encountered tear gas and gunfire from the police.
“This act of defiance reflects the critical level of frustration,” Johnson remarked. “Protesting under such perilous conditions is evidently fraught with danger, yet individuals are willing to risk it all for change.”
The United Nations has raised concerns that the Kenyan police-led mission is currently operating with less than half of its intended 2,500 personnel, hindered by financial and human resource shortages.
“Persisting in waiting for increased external assistance is clearly not a viable option,” concluded Johnston.