At least 70 people were reportedly killed in attacks carried out by heavily armed gang members in the Petite-Rivière de l’Artibonite region of central Haiti between Saturday and Tuesday. Members of the Gran Grif gang stormed the rural Jean-Denis area late Saturday night into Sunday morning, opening fire and burning homes. Nearly 9,000 people were forced to flee as a result of these attacks.
According to Defenseurs Plus, a human rights group that reported the preliminary death toll of 70, more than 50 houses were burned to the ground. While Defenseurs Plus reported 30 injuries, other sources reported several hundred, and the United Nations does not rule out the possibility that the death toll could reach 80.
Videos circulating on social media showed bullet-riddled bodies. Roads were reportedly blocked to prevent police from intervening. The armed men withdrew from Jean-Denis but later repositioned themselves in nearby Pont Benoit. They reportedly attacked several rural towns on the outskirts of Marchand Dessalines on Tuesday.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that nearly 9,000 people were displaced as a result of these attacks. The IOM reported Thursday that the majority — 80 percent — sought refuge with host families, while 20 percent settled across 14 sites, including five that had already existed prior to these incidents and nine that were established following the tragic events.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), immediate needs include hot meals, emergency healthcare, and protection, including psychosocial and child support. Other needs include temporary shelter, non-food items, and access to water, sanitation, and hygiene.
In a report on Wednesday, OCHA stated that the situation remains volatile and unpredictable. Access to the area is difficult for humanitarian organizations, which makes assessing needs and damage difficult. As of Friday, no verified information is available.
Gran Grif, the largest gang in the Artibonite region, has a history of grave human rights abuses against civilians, including an attack on the same town nearly a year ago. According to the National Network for the Defense of Human Rights, Gran Grif's attack on Jean-Denis followed weeks of threats, but residents did not flee because they believed a self-defense group would protect them.
Armed violence in Haiti is fueled by the extreme brutality of gangs consolidating control, the rise of self-defense groups amid inadequate state protection, and operations by security forces and private military companies.
In response to the atrocity in Petite-Rivière de l’Artibonite, Amnesty International stated on Wednesday that this new massacre highlights the widespread failure to protect the population.
“The massacre, reportedly carried out by ‘Gran Grif’, one of Haiti’s most violent gangs, is yet another tragedy in a long chain of crimes that the Haitian authorities and the international community have failed to stop,” said Astrid Valencia, Deputy Director for Research for the Americas at Amnesty International.
“This crime once again highlights the human cost of the authorities’ inability to protect the population, with human rights at the center. There is an urgent need to establish conditions for sustainable security, including ensuring that all those suspected of criminal responsibility are brought to justice in fair trials.”
More than 5,500 people have been killed in Haiti
A report published last week by the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) details the human rights impacts of gangs' expanding reach in Haiti, including their control over key sea and road routes amid persistent deadly violence. This violence involves gangs, security forces, private security contractors, and self-defense groups.
According to OHCHR-verified data, more than 5,500 people were killed and over 2,600 were injured in Haiti between March 2025 and mid-January 2026. The majority of those killed were at the hands of security forces.
At least 1,424 people were killed by armed gangs, at least 3,497 by security forces in operations against gangs, and at least 598 by self-defense groups in assaults against gangs.
Self-defense groups, who are often armed with stones, machetes, and increasingly, high-caliber firearms, have also committed serious abuses. These abuses include lynching individuals suspected of gang affiliation and burning their bodies. In some cases, police allegedly encouraged or facilitated the killings.
Amidst this backdrop, gangs have escalated their indiscriminate attacks on civilians. Individuals perceived as defying their authority or cooperating with the police have been deliberately targeted, and some have been executed. Entire communities remain trapped in gang-controlled areas or along shifting frontlines, living under constant threat.
First troop deployment from Gang Suppression Force arrives in Haiti
The latest large-scale attack occurred before the arrival of a new international police and military force on Wednesday, marking the first deployment of new forces to combat escalating levels of gang violence in the Caribbean country.
On Wednesday, a UN mission began work in Haiti, supporting the Security Council-backed Gang Suppression Force (GSF). The UN Support Office in Haiti (UNSOH) announced that it met the timeline to provide the GSF with full logistical and operational support in accordance with Security Council Resolution 2793 (2025).
According to a UN spokesperson, the Support Office is prepared to provide the GSF with living accommodations, offices, medical support, and other essential services. The Support Office has deployed two helicopters to provide necessary mobility between Port-au-Prince and Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic.
In September 2025, the UN Security Council authorized the multinational GSF in Haiti to replace a Kenyan-led Security Support Mission. The planned 5,550-person force will protect vulnerable groups, support the reintegration of former fighters, and strengthen Haitian institutions, among other tasks.
Haiti is facing a deepening humanitarian crisis
The country is grappling with escalating gang violence, the subsequent collapse of essential services, and frequent natural disasters, including floods, droughts, and earthquakes. The ongoing armed violence has brought the country to the brink of collapse. By 2026, over half of the population — 6.4 million people — will require humanitarian assistance.
At least 1.4 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to violence, marking an unprecedented level of internal displacement in Haiti. Children account for over half of those displaced within the country. Many families live in extremely precarious conditions, often lacking access to healthcare, clean water, toilets, food, schools, and adequate shelter.
Currently, at least 26 gangs operate in Port-au-Prince and its surrounding communities. In recent months, these armed groups have expanded their control to 90 percent of the capital and beyond. Amid the ongoing violence and mass displacement in Haiti, gang recruitment of children increased by 200 percent in 2025.
Around half of all gang members are estimated to be under the age of 18. They often join gangs to support their families or after receiving threats against themselves or their loved ones. Others join after being separated from their families, viewing the gangs as a means of survival and protection.
According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, over 5.9 million people in Haiti are currently experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or higher). Among them are nearly 2 million experiencing emergency levels (IPC 4) and 3.9 million experiencing crisis levels of hunger.
However, funding for Haiti’s humanitarian response has plummeted, and there is no end in sight to the funding shortage. This year's Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) requests US$880 million to support those in dire need. So far, only 20 percent of the 2026 HNRP has been secured.