UN Secretary General strongly condemns gang killings in Haiti

STORY: :: UN responds after gang members slaughter dozens in Haiti

:: Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN Secretary General

“As far as Haiti is concerned, given the violence we have seen, the Secretary-General strongly condemns the attack by armed gangs in the town of Pont-Sonde, Artibonite department, which took place yesterday. The attack left several dozen people dead, including women and children, and injured many more, leading to the displacement of at least 3,000 people. As gang violence continues to spread from the capital to other departments in Haiti, the Secretary General emphasizes the importance of the Joint efforts by the Haitian National Police and the Multinational Security Assistance Mission must be supported. The Secretary-General urges all Member States to ensure that the Multinational Security Assistance Mission receives the financial and logistical support it needs to succeed.

:: October 4, 2024

Gunmen from the Gran Grif gang killed at least 70 people, including three young children, as they swept through a Haitian town, firing automatic rifles at residents, a spokesman for the United Nations human rights office said Friday.

According to the UN, at least 16 other people were seriously injured in the attack in the early hours of Thursday (October 3), including two gang members who were hit in a shootout with Haitian police

The gang members reportedly set fire to at least 45 houses and 34 vehicles, forcing residents to evacuate their homes.

Pont-Sonde is a major rice producer based in Haiti's Artibonite breadbasket, at a key crossroads connecting the capital Port-au-Prince with the north.

Artibonite saw some of the worst violence outside the capital, worsening the hunger crisis that has left half of the population suffering from severe food insecurity and thousands facing starvation in Port-au-Prince.

Gang leader Jimmy “Barbeque” Cherizier, who served as spokesman for an alliance of armed gangs in the capital, said in a video that the attack was part of a plan to stop Artibonite from supplying the country with food.

The number of people internally displaced by the conflict has now risen to more than 700,000, almost doubling in six months, despite the deployment of a United Nations-backed mission to help understaffed police restore order.

Haiti's government had requested that the mission, which consists of volunteer contributions and has so far received only a fraction of the promised funds, be converted into a formal UN peacekeeping mission.

This proposal was blocked by Russia and China in the UN Security Council.