Nearly 1,660 people were killed and 845 injured. However, kidnappings for ransom have decreased across the country.
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A disastrous situation. The first quarter of 2024 was the most violent since at least the beginning of 2022 in Haiti, a Caribbean country ravaged by gangs, the UN revealed on Friday April 19. Murders have notably increased by 50%.
In detail, 1,660 people (1,347 men, 273 women and 40 children) were killed and 845 were injured (624 men, 179 women and 42 children), a spokesperson for the mission told AFP. . The results for the last quarter of 2023 showed 1,104 murders and 532 injuries.
Not all of the recorded killings concern civilians. According to the report, 141 of the victims were killed in the first quarter by “self-defense” groups who, since spring 2023, have targeted people designated as gang members.
Kidnapping for ransom, on the other hand, fell by 37% across the country, with at least 438 people kidnapped, most of them in the Artibonite department, where gangs attack travelers on public transport. They also continued to resort to sexual violence against residents of “rival” neighborhoods, underlines the report, denouncing in particular the collective rapes suffered by young girls.
“Gang activities have severely limited access to essential services, including health care and education, and have exacerbated food insecurity”, lamented the head of the UN mission, Maria Isabel Salvador, in a press release. The latter calls for the acceleration of the deployment of the international security mission which must be led by Kenya.
