PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – The United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) says the human rights situation in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country remained extremely worrying during the second quarter of 2025.
It said criminal groups expanded and intensified their attacks outside of the capital, Port-au-Prince, particularly in the Centre department and the Bas Artibonite. There was some slowdown in their advance into the capital, although the situation in some communes, such as Kenscoff, remained highly volatile.
“Gang attacks in the Artibonite and Centre departments, and the capital, continue to cause serious human rights violations and exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis, leading to massive population displacement with dramatic consequences for women and children in particular,” said Ulrika Richardson, the acting head of BINUH and the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator.
BINUH said that in total, between April 1 and June 30, 2025, at least 1,520 people were killed and 609 injured in armed violence, primarily in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, followed by Artibonite and Centre. In addition, there were at least 185 kidnappings and 628 victims of sexual violence.
Abuses by criminal groups caused more than 24 per cent of those killed or injured during the quarter.
The UN said that gang members continued to resort to murders, gang rapes, and kidnappings to maintain their control over populations living in areas under their influence. Cases of sexual slavery, sexual exploitation, and child trafficking and exploitation were also documented.
During the same period, 64 per cent of those killed or injured were killed during security force operations against criminal groups, more than a third of them during strikes using explosive drones.
“It is noteworthy that at least 15 percent of the victims were people not associated with gangs, killed or injured while on the street or in their homes. Furthermore, at least four members of the security forces also lost their lives during these operations. In addition, some police officers and the government commissioner of Miragoâne were also reportedly involved in 73 summary executions,” BINH said.
It said 12 per cent of those killed or injured were killed in violence attributable to self-defense groups and members of the population linked to the “Bwa Kalé” movement against alleged gang members and those suspected of collaborating with them.
“This armed violence once again caused significant population movements and exacerbated the humanitarian crisis. As of June 30, more than 1,300,000 people were displaced throughout the country,” the BINUH report noted.
Meanwhile, local law enforcement authorities say that on Sunday, in Kenscoff, in the locality of Tête Bois-Pin, heavily armed individuals kidnapped nine people from the Sainte-Hélène orphanage run by the organization “Nos Petits frères et soeurs,” which houses approximately 270 children, including about 50 with disabilities.
The hostages included Gena Heraty, an Irish missionary in Haiti since 1993 and head of the section reserved for children with reduced mobility, seven Haitian employees, including a nurse, and a three-year-old child with disabilities, said the acting Mayor of Kenscoff, Masillon Jean.
“The kidnappers entered without firing a single shot, after breaching the orphanage’s perimeter wall, and kidnapped the staff there, then left with their hostages,” he added.
The kidnappers have since allowed Heraty to call to confirm the kidnapping and provide updates, but made no demands for a ransom.
Faced with these abuses and human rights violations, and despite the persistent dysfunction of the judicial system, the United Nations continued to support the authorities in combating impunity and corruption and strengthening accountability for human rights violations.
In April, the government issued a decree creating two specialized judicial units to address mass crimes, including sexual violence and financial crimes.
Judicial authorities also organized criminal trials in several jurisdictions across the country, while the police strengthened the capacity of their specialized units to combat sexual violence.
The report calls on the Haitian government, with the support of the international community, to strengthen the fight against gangs, while strictly respecting human rights and standards on the use of force.
It calls for accelerating the establishment of specialized judicial units, continuing vetting of the national police, and protecting the population. The international community is also urged to support the full deployment of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission and to intensify the fight against arms trafficking.
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