Gang violence is expanding at 'alarming' rate in Haiti, UN warns

By Betul Yuruk

UNITED NATIONS (AA) - The UN warned on Wednesday that gang violence is expanding at an alarming rate in areas previously considered relatively safe in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince.

Gangs control wide swathes of the city as Haitians face political tumult, a humanitarian crisis and poverty in addition to extreme violence.

The number of recorded criminal incidents more than doubled to 1,647 in the first quarter of 2023, including homicides, rapes, kidnappings and lynchings, UN Special Representative for Haiti Maria Isabel Salvador told the UN Security Council.

''The horrific violence in gang-ridden areas, including sexual violence, particularly against women and girls, is emblematic of the terror afflicting much of Haiti’s population,'' she said.

She said some residents have begun to take matters in their own hands when they took 13 suspected gang members from police custody and beat them to death and burned their bodies.

Salvador said police were severely understaffed and ill-equipped to address the violence and criminality.

''The need for urgent international support to the police to address the rapidly deteriorating security situation cannot be overemphasized,'' she said.

The US has been trying to persuade Canada to deploy forces to Haiti but so far Ottawa has ruled out sending any kind of armed force.