Haiti gang raid death toll rises to 47 as more than 50 kidnapped, says UN

UN chief Guterres said the attack underscores ‘the alarming security situation in Haiti’ due to gangs.

At least 47 people were killed, more than 50 others kidnapped, and another 22 people injured in a gang raid near Haiti’s capital of Port-au-Prince, the United Nations has said, prompting anger over violence amid repeated deadly attacks.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday condemned the attack in the town of Kenscoff, which took place on the evening of August 23.

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It is believed to be one of the largest mass kidnappings in Haiti in recent years, and comes as Haiti hopes to hold its first general election in more than a decade.

Guterres said in a statement that the event underscores “the alarming security situation in Haiti and reinforce[s] the urgent need to intensify Haitian and international security efforts to combat gangs”.

Jean Massillon, Kenscoff’s mayor, said armed men “sowed chaos” as they set homes on fire and killed residents. He said gang members targeted a church and homes, including that of Jean William Pape, a leading public health expert.

Massillon blamed the attack on members of Viv Ansanm, a group that was designated as a “foreign terrorist organisation” by the United States government last year.

The United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti has said estimates of casualties could change.

Even as Haiti’s government decried a “heinous attack” and promised to reinforce security, residents demanded the local police chief step down, saying officers failed to protect people killed a short distance from the police station.

Kenscoff resident Marc Paul, 42, said gangs kidnapped his brother, stepmother, stepfather and two cousins. He said his 16-year-old niece was also captured and raped but was able to escape and has reunited with him.

“I had to run over bodies,” he told The Associated Press news agency as he recalled how he fled the attack.

Another resident, Coriolan Kendy, standing by his cousin’s body, lying on the road in a blood-stained sheet, told the Reuters news agency: “People in Kenscoff are suffering and the government is to blame.”

The prime minister’s office has promised to take action, stating that “Kenscoff will not be abandoned”.

“The government’s authority will be restored, without weakness and without delay,’ the prime minister’s office said on social media.

In a video posted on social media, a gang leader threatened Vladimir Paraison, director of the Haitian National Police.

“Paraison, if any of our soldiers are hurt, I will kill all of them,” he said, referring to the hostages.

The gang member identified himself as Izo 2, a reference to Izo, or Johnson Andre, one of Haiti’s most powerful gang leaders.

The hillside community of Kenscoff, in a strategic position overlooking routes into the capital, has suffered a dozen attacks by armed gangs since last year, forcing thousands to flee their homes.

Powerful gangs under a broad alliance have for years cemented their influence over Haiti’s capital and expanded to nearby regions, despite attempts by foreign nations to reinforce the country’s outgunned police.