by Sarah Morland
(Reuters) – More than 2,500 people were killed or injured in Haiti between January and March due to gang violence, an increase of 53% compared to the last three months of 2023, said Friday the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH).
At least 590 people were killed in police operations, BINUH said in a report. At least 141 people have been killed by militias.
Most of the violence took place in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince.
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According to the BINUH report, gang members carried out rapes in rival neighborhoods as well as in prisons and displacement camps.
The violence has displaced hundreds of thousands of people in Haiti, according to UN estimates. Despite the criticisms expressed by the organization, certain countries, such as the United States or the Dominican Republic, continue to send migrants back to Haiti.
The chaotic situation on the island pushed Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who came to power without being elected following the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in the summer of 2021, to go to Kenya at the end of February, which caused an outbreak of violence in Port-au-Prince during his absence. Ariel Henry has since left office.
(French version Camille Raynaud)
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