Around forty people were killed on the night of Sunday August 23 to Monday August 24 in Haiti during an attack carried out by members of armed gangs in Kenscoff, Massillon Jean, mayor of this town located in the heights of the capital Port-au-Prince, told AFP.
“We have counted around forty bodies. The search continues. Some people are still missing,” declared the councilor, referring to “a night of terror”. The gang members “made an incursion into a camp for displaced people located in a church. They executed several people. There were deaths and dozens of injured. Some people were kidnapped,” he added.
The office of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé expressed in a statement its “deep compassion” for the victims and their families. The government also announced the sending of reinforcements to restore security in the area.
A gang suppression force being formed
For several months, Kenscoff has been the scene of clashes between armed groups seeking to extend their influence in the region.
The poorest country in the Americas, Haiti has long been going through a political, economic and security crisis, but the situation has deteriorated significantly in recent years, with gangs increasing the number of murders, kidnappings, rapes and recruitment of children.
Also readHaiti in the clutches of gangs: the humanitarian crisis drags on
Of around 11 million residents, nearly 1.5 million are displaced in the country because of the violence, according to an estimate in June by the International Organization for Migration, which stressed that the attacks were not limited to the capital.
A UN-backed Gang Suppression Force (FRG) is being formed to assist overwhelmed local police forces. This force should ultimately include 5,500 foreign police and military personnel, but the number already deployed is not known.
With AFP
