PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Around 150 military police officers from Central America have arrived in Haiti to support the government’s efforts to combat the escalating violence caused by powerful gangs that have disrupted daily life for millions. The first group of approximately 75 officers, mainly from Guatemala, was welcomed at Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince on Saturday by Godfrey Otunge, the Kenyan commander of the UN-backed mission that has been working for months to restore order in the country.
In a statement at the welcoming ceremony, Otunge issued a stern warning to the gangs: “The gangs have only two choices: surrender, lay down their weapons, and face justice, or face us in the field. With the addition of the Guatemalan and El Salvador forces, the gangs will have nowhere to hide. We will root them out of their enclave.”
A similar-sized contingent, which also included a small number of forces from El Salvador, arrived in Haiti on Friday aboard a US Air Force aircraft. The troops were greeted by top Haitian officials and US Ambassador Dennis Hankins upon their arrival.
Gang-led assaults on prisons, police stations, and the country’s main international airport have escalated in recent years. These gangs are now estimated to control about 85% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, further destabilizing the country.
In one of the most audacious attacks to date, gunmen opened fire on a crowd gathered on Christmas Eve to celebrate the reopening of Haiti’s largest public hospital. The hospital had been closed after being ransacked by gangs earlier in the year. Tragically, two journalists covering the event and a police officer were killed in the attack, further highlighting the dangers posed by the violent gangs that have destabilized the country.
Before this week’s deployment, an international mission aimed at restoring order had been led by around 400 security officers from Kenya. Other countries, including the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, and Chad, have also pledged to send personnel, though it remains unclear when their forces will arrive. This growing international presence is part of the effort to combat the gangs that control large portions of Haiti, including key areas in the capital.
