Overview:
On Monday, Jan. 27, gangs from Carrefour, a commune about seven miles south of downtown Port-au-Prince, launched an assault on communities within the hills of Kenscoff. This gang assault follows per week of threats geared toward seizing management of the realm. The Haitian Nationwide Police responded decisively to thwart the gang offensive, ensuing within the deaths of a number of gang members, in accordance with legislation enforcement authorities.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — The Haitian Nationwide Police (PNH) reported on Monday that a number of gang members have been killed throughout an armed confrontation in Kenscoff, a hilly commune roughly 15 miles southeast of Port-au-Prince. Specialised police items efficiently thwarted an assault by gangs from close by Carrefour who tried to broaden their territory. Authorities additionally seized a firearm and a communications radio throughout the operation.
Native media experiences point out that greater than 20 people have been killed in gunfire exchanges with police throughout a day of maximum violence within the mountains above Port-au-Prince. Nevertheless, a spokesperson for the PNH didn’t reply to The Haitian Occasions request for a rely of fallen gang members. The Belot and Godet communities within the Kenscoff commune have been attacked, forcing many residents to flee. Closely armed gang members not solely fired upon these communities but in addition set a number of houses ablaze.
The assault on Kenscoff occurred amid escalating gang violence throughout Haiti, the place armed teams now management over 80% of the capital and surrounding areas, ensuing within the deaths of greater than 5,600 individuals and displacing over 700,000. Kenscoff, situated lower than eight miles from the bustling Pétion-Ville commune, holds strategic significance as a hyperlink between the West and Southeast departments. Current neighborhood efforts have enhanced this route, offering a much-needed different to the gang-controlled Nationwide Street #2.
Regardless of safety measures adopted by native authorities following threats issued earlier within the final week, gangs launched their offensive on neighborhoods close to the Kenscoff municipal middle. They aimed to ascertain management over the realm, a vital different route for vacationers avoiding Martissant and Carrefour roads.
Interim Mayor Massillon Jean confirmed that the attackers got here from Carrefour and triggered vital disruptions. “A number of homes have been burned, and each day actions got here to a standstill,” Jean mentioned, including that police reinforcements have been deployed to fend off the armed assaults after municipal officers made pressing requires assist.
The PNH and the Multinational Safety Help Mission (MSS) dispatched reinforcements, together with specialised items and Kenyan law enforcement officials, to counter the assault. “A number of specialised items of the PNH are onerous at work, pursuing armed gang members,” the police mentioned in a press release. “These operations purpose to neutralize armed criminals and strengthen the police presence inside the commune.”
Movies shared by residents confirmed heavy gunfire and smoke rising from the mountains of Kenscoff. Fleeing residents described the terrifying ordeal, which left many displaced. Mayor Jean couldn’t affirm if there have been civilian casualties however acknowledged vital materials injury.
To spice up the boldness and morale of the officers concerned within the operations, Haitian Police Director Basic Rameau Normil and Commander of the Multinational Safety Help Mission (MSS) Godfrey Otunge visited the native police station in Kenscoff on Monday. Normil urged residents to collaborate with legislation enforcement by reporting any suspicious exercise.
Different clashes between the police and gang members of the felony coalition « Viv Ansanm » happened within the capital, notably within the Marché Salomon space, not removed from the Nationwide Palace. A police officer named Harold Théodore, assigned to the Port-au-Prince Police Station, was killed within the change of gunfire.
“These operations purpose to neutralize armed criminals and strengthen the police presence inside the commune.”
PNH assertion concerning the scenario in Kenscoff
“The blood of veteran warriors like Harold should not be shed in useless, whereas bandits proceed to unfold terror within the downtown space,” declared the SPNH_17 police union in a press release of sympathy on X.
“Each police officer who loses their life within the line of responsibility is a good loss for a rustic already in misery. SPNH_17 reaffirms its dedication to combating the phenomenon of insecurity, a menace to the nation.”
Preventive safety measures in Kenscoff didn’t cease the gangs
In response to escalating threats, authorities in Kenscoff had carried out precautionary measures earlier than the assault. These included obligatory identification for all adults touring inside the commune, a curfew from 10 p.m. to five a.m., a ban on giant outside cultural and leisure actions and neighborhood requires solidarity to counter gang incursions.
Regardless of these efforts, the assault underscores the challenges confronted by native authorities in containing Haiti’s gang disaster.
Haiti’s gang violence reached alarming ranges in 2024. Armed teams have more and more focused strategic areas like Kenscoff to broaden their affect.
The Haitian Nationwide Police, underneath strain to reply successfully, faces vital useful resource constraints, together with an absence of personnel and tools. Whereas operations just like the one in Kenscoff reveal the police power’s dedication, the broader disaster continues to pressure the nation’s safety infrastructure.