Gangs have “almost severe control” in Haiti, the United Nations warns

Senior UN officials warned on Wednesday that Haiti gangs gained “almost close control of the capital, and the authorities were unable to stop escalating violence through the poor Caribbean state.

Gad Fieety Wali, Executive Director of the United Nations Bureau of Drugs and Crime, told the United Nations Security Council that an estimated 90 percent of the capital, Port or Prince, under the control of criminal groups that expand attacks not only in the surrounding areas but after they were the previous peaceful areas.

She said, “South Haiti, which has been isolated until recently from violence, witnessed a severe increase in incidents related to gangs.” “In the East, criminal groups are using land roads, including major crossings such as Belladere and Malpasse, where attacks against police and customs have been reported.”

The notes came a day after Bob Ray, President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, He said in a statement “The situation in Haiti is deteriorating at a rate that warns of danger.”

“The Haiti population is exploited, raped, kidnapped and recruited by armed gangs. They suffer from malnutrition and face famine conditions.”

Wale said in its presentation that criminal groups are included in the vacuum left by the absence or limited delivery of public services and the establishment of “parallel governance structures”, and that controlling gangs in the main trade roads has paralyzed legal trade, which led to the high prices of fuel in cooking and rice, which is the national high food.

“Without an increase in the international community, the complete collapse of the state’s presence in the capital can become a very real scenario.”

Last month, the United Nations The International Organization for Migration 11 per cent of Haiti residents of approximately 12 million people fled their homes due to continuous violence.

International security force lack financing

Gangs have grown in power since the assassination of President JOVENEL MOISE in July 2021. Haiti has not had a president since the assassination, and the elections have not been held since 2016.

An undisputed mission led by the Kenyan police arrived in Haiti last year to help suppress gang violence, but the task is still suffering from employee deficiency, with about 40 percent of only 2,500 individuals originally visible.

UN Secretary -General Antonio Guterres in February would suggest that the United Nations provide drones, fuel, land transport, air and other non -deadly support for Kenya’s mission in the Council.

In response to the gangs, Wale from UNDC said that there is rapid growth in the number and activities of private security companies and self -defense groups, where some are trying to protect their societies while others act illegally and collude with gangs.

Jenca said: “Over the past three months, these groups have been said to have killed at least 100 men and women suspected of gangs or cooperation.”

He said that the past three months have witnessed an increase in sexual violence by gangs with the political mission of the United Nations in Haiti, which documents 364 accidents of sexual violence, which included 378 survivors from March to April.

With a weak national police force facing sharp tensions in its leadership, an army that needs to be rebuilt and limited to multinationals, UN experts warned that gangs will continue to “obtain the upper hand unless stronger international support is provided.” UNICEF has already evaluated this Some gangs recruit children To support their illegal activities.

Experts said the Hayette National Police also carried out “a disturbing number of killings outside the judiciary”, where members of the suspects were often executed, “noting 281 brief executions by specialized police units in 2024, including 22 women and 8 children.

Although UN weapons ban Haiti, gangs continue to obtain more weapons, not only from regional civil markets but from police stocks in Haiti and the neighboring Dominican Republic, experts said.

The United States is trying to end the legal protection of the Hayettin

Haiti’s turmoil comes at a time when the Donald Trump administration announced last week that it had ended legal protection for about 500,000 Haiti as soon as possible, which led to their potential deportation.

“The environmental situation in Haiti has improved enough so that it would be safe for Haiti citizens to return to their homes,” The US Department of Internal Security said in a accompanying statement.

Step Courts are challenged.

DHS statement came even in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Haiti is currently appointed as a travel consultant levelProviding advice to the Americans not to travel there due to “kidnapping, crime, civil disorders, and limited health care.”