Haiti Gang Wars Claim 187 Lives in 11 Days; UN Calls for Foreign Intervention

In less than two weeks, at least 187 people have been killed in fights between gangs in and around Haiti's capital.
The United Nations renewed its appeal for nations to "urgently consider" deploying a specialized force to Haiti
Haiti's collapse will be on the agenda when US President Joe Biden visits Canada this week

Fresh fights between gangs in Haiti's capital and elsewhere have killed at least 187 people in less than two weeks and injured more than 150, the United Nations reported on Tuesday.

The current wave of violence between February 27 and March 9 in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and the central area of Artibonite uprooted hundreds of people. According to officials, they drove farmers to abandon their fields as malnutrition worsened.

UN Urges Action in Haiti

A gang known as 'Baz Gran Grif,' which loosely translates to 'Big Claw Crew,' has been held mostly responsible for increased violence in central Haiti. In addition, since the beginning of the year, approximately 260 house invasions and public abductions have been recorded, according to officials.

With the killing of President Jovenel Mose in July 2021, gangs have become stronger and now control an estimated sixty percent of Port-au-Prince. In addition, they have engaged in conflict in the central cities of Petite Riviere de l'Artibonite, Verrettes, Estere, and Liancourt, as per Fox News.

This week, Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced that he intends to activate Haiti's military to assist an under-resourced and overworked police agency in combating the continuous gang violence, which has caused an increasing number of schools and businesses to close.

Local rights organization RNDDH says that gangs, not official security personnel, now dominate Port-au-Prince and more than half of Haiti. A day after families fled a new escalation of fatal violence in the Petion-Ville suburb of the capital, the UN reiterated its plea for countries to "urgently consider" deploying a specialized force to the Caribbean nation.

In October last year, Haiti's caretaker government asked for a "quick response force" to bolster the country's police, but no nation has volunteered to head such a group. Over two weeks of violent fighting at the beginning of March, at least 208 people were killed, according to the UN office, with snipers firing arbitrarily at individuals in their houses and on the streets.

Per Reuters, the agency stated that mass sexual assault is also utilized against women and girls to terrify, punish, and coerce families into paying abduction ransoms.

Haiti Gang Violence

Pascale Solages, the co-founder of the feminist organization Neges Mawon, stated at a hearing of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) at the beginning of this month that her organization has received reports of over 650 cases of collective and individual rape in portion of the capital since May of last year.

They included a mother of three who saw the rape of her nine-year-old daughter and women who fell pregnant or experienced difficulties from unsafe, illegal abortions. At a conference in the Caribbean last month, officials called for a crackdown on the trafficking of heavy weapons to the island. The UN also urged nations to pursue individuals who provide assistance and cash to gangs.

Children and teachers have been injured by stray gunfire, and the number of abductions of parents and students in the proximity of schools has increased dramatically, causing several to close.

Marta Hurtado, a spokeswoman for the United Nations, stated that the continuous instability and violence have caused food costs to skyrocket and that half of the population does not have enough to eat. She noted that at least 160,000 people had been displaced and lived in dangerous conditions, with a quarter residing in improvised communities lacking access to basic sanitation.

Volker Turk, the UN's human rights head, has urged the Haitian government to promptly address the security situation by reinforcing the police and revamping the judicial system, as per CBS News. This week, US President Joe Biden will pay a long-delayed visit to close partner Canada to emphasize solidarity on Ukraine and the environment, according to sources on Tuesday. But, Biden will likely make headway on more contentious trade conflicts.

According to US and Canadian officials, no major announcements are planned. Both presidents are expected to agree to continue working on contentious issues, such as defense expenditures, the crisis in Haiti, and the dairy trade dispute.