- At least 150 dead this week due to gang violence in Haiti capital – UN
- Total death toll for the year passes 4,500 – but likely much higher
- 20,000 displaced this week, total of more than 700,000 people displaced
At least 150 dead this week due to gang violence in Haiti capital – UN
Violence in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, has surged dramatically, leaving at least 150 dead since November 11 and pushing the country’s death toll for the year past 4,500, according to the United Nations. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk warned of escalating chaos, calling for urgent action to halt the gang violence overwhelming the capital.
A coalition of heavily armed gangs now controls approximately 80% of Port-au-Prince, targeting civilians and obstructing daily life. Despite the presence of a Kenyan-led international force supporting Haiti’s outgunned police, the violence has displaced about 20,000 people in the past week and injured 92 others.
The city’s four million residents are effectively trapped, with gangs controlling all major roads in and out of the capital, further deepening the humanitarian crisis.
The real death toll is likely much higher and an estimated 700,000 people in total have been internally displaced across the country, half of them children.