Since the end of last year, they have been seeking more assistance and support for the police amid the surge in violence in the Caribbean.
Haiti is approaching the “no-return point” as it struggles to respond to the spread of gang violence, the country’s top UN official said.
Maria Isabel Salvador, the special representative of the United Nations Caribbean, issued a warning to the UN Security Council on Monday.
“As gang violence spreads to new parts of the country, Haitians experience an increase in levels of vulnerability and an increase in skepticism about the nation’s ability to meet their needs,” Salvador said.
“Haiti could face utter chaos,” she said.
“I encourage you to continue to be involved and to meet the urgent needs of the country and its people,” she said.
Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, faces serious political instability and a belt of countries under the control of rival armed gangs who carry out widespread murder, rape and trickery.
Salvador cited the outbreak of cholera and gender-based violence as security situations worsened.
More recently, Salvador said the gang seized the city of Milevalai in central Haiti and released more than 500 prisoners during the assault. It was the destruction of the fifth prison in less than a year, and was “part of a deliberate effort to settle control, demolish facilities and incorporate fear,” she said.
Armed gangs are also increasingly fighting for control of the capital, Port-au-Prince, with violence escalating as rival gangs try to establish new territory, she said.
Meanwhile, Kenya-led forces approved by the UN have failed to push the gang back since deployment began last June. The mission has around 1,000 police officers from six countries, with just a few of the initially planned 2,500 people.
Kenya’s national security adviser Monica Juma told the council during a video briefing from Nairobi that the military has entered “the critical stage of the operation.”
Haitian police and multinational forces have launched intensive anti-kawara operations, particularly in securing critical infrastructure, achieving some notable advances, but she said there is a big gap.
According to an unpublished report seen by AFP News Agency, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also warned that further international support is “needed immediately to prevent the national police from approaching the brink.”
The report details the surge in violence, with the UN recording 2,660 murders in three months since December 2024, up 41.3% in the last quarter.
However, the report pointed to high civilian casualties in efforts to counter the gang.
During this period, 702 people were killed due to anti-Ginn operations, with 21% estimated to be innocent civilians, the report said.
There was also a surprising rise in gender-based violence, with 347 incidents reported in the five months leading up to February 2025, according to UN data.
Gang rape is the most common offence, accounting for 61% of cases.
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