According to a recent UN report, over 1,740 individuals were killed or injured by gangs in Haiti from July to September 2024, marking a nearly 30% increase compared to the previous quarter.
During the last three months, at least 669 people were reported killed in police operations against gangs, with three-quarters of the victims suspected gang members and one-quarter civilians.
The report indicates that authorities conducted 106 extrajudicial killings, including six children under the age of 10, who were allegedly providing information to gang members.
Sexual violence remains pervasive, with at least 55 victims aged 10 to 70 reporting gang rapes, although such cases are believed to be underreported.
A UN mission led by Kenyan police is attempting to suppress gangs that now control 85% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, while struggling with a lack of resources and personnel. This situation has prompted calls for the deployment of a UN peacekeeping mission to the Caribbean island.
The Integrated Office of the United Nations in Haiti (BINUH) warned that in the absence of a functioning state, gangs increasingly assume roles typically held by police and the judiciary, imposing their own rules.
The majority of violence continues to occur in Port-au-Prince and the central Artibonite region, where dozens have been killed in massacres this month.
Among the 106 extrajudicial killings, 96 were carried out by police, while 10 were linked to Jean Ernest Muskadin, the public prosecutor for the town of Miragoane, who is accused of killing at least 36 individuals suspected of being gang members or common criminals since 2022.
In total, at least 59 children were killed or injured during this quarter. Gang violence has left over 700,000 people homeless in recent years and escalated this month, as armed individuals attempt to take over Solino, one of the last neighborhoods in Port-au-Prince not under their control.