United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that criminal gangs could take full control of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, unless the international community ramps up support for a UN-backed security mission in the Caribbean nation.
In a report released Wednesday, Guterres called for urgent financial, logistical, and personnel contributions to bolster the Kenya-led multinational security mission.
He cautioned that any further delays risk the “catastrophic” collapse of Haiti’s already fragile security institutions, potentially enabling gangs to dominate the entire metropolitan area.
The mission, approved by the UN Security Council in October 2023, has struggled to reach full strength. Of the anticipated 2,500 police officers, fewer than 800 have been deployed, limiting its ability to assist Haiti’s overwhelmed national police force.
“Time is of the essence,” Guterres stressed, expressing horror at the “brutality and scale of violence” perpetrated by armed gangs.
Gang violence in Haiti has escalated alarmingly, with at least 5,601 people killed in 2024—a sharp increase from the previous year. Over a million Haitians have been displaced, three times as many as in 2023.
Haiti’s political crisis has further exacerbated the situation. With no functioning president or parliament, the nation is under the control of a transitional authority struggling to address rampant violence, deepening poverty, and governance challenges.
