The highest official of the United Nations in Haiti, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, warned this Monday before the UN Security Council about "the ability of gangs to adapt their tactics as security operations intensify," amid a crisis of violence in the Caribbean country. His words come after the attack recorded the day before against a vehicle of the Gang Suppression Force (GSF, for its acronym in English) in the capital, Port-au-Prince.
"What is particularly concerning is the ability of gangs to adapt their tactics as security operations intensify," Ruiz Massieu reiterated in his appearance, in which he also warned of an increase in reprisals against the civilian population and the territorial expansion of armed groups into rural areas.
The conclusions of the special representative are based on the latest United Nations report on Haiti, which details how gangs are increasingly resorting to hostage-taking, intimidation, and attacks against civilians to maintain control of their enclaves and challenge state authority.
Among the most serious episodes, the UN cites the assault carried out on August 23 and 24 in Kenscoff, a mountainous locality located southeast of Port-au-Prince. In this attack, at least 47 people died, 22 were injured, and 52 were kidnapped; thirteen of them regained their freedom later thanks to local initiatives supported by the United Nations.
The document also emphasizes that the actions of the Haitian security forces also have a significant human cost: they are responsible for 52% of the 808 Haitians killed or injured since early July, including 148 civilians with no links to criminal structures.
In this context, the Gang Suppression Force, created with the endorsement of the Security Council and logistical support from the UN, continues its deployment. However, as of October 12, it only had 1,563 uniformed personnel, far below the 5,550 authorized agents. The mission also operates under constant threat, as demonstrated by the attack on Sunday against a GSF vehicle patrolling the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince. The mission has confirmed the incident but has avoided commenting on possible victims, despite local media reporting the alleged disappearance of five Salvadoran soldiers.
In the same session of the Security Council, the special representative of the GSF, Jack Christofides, intervened, who emphasized that "the momentum is real, but so are the challenges." "Eliminating gangs from an area is an important step, but it is not an end in itself," he pointed out, insisting that "the ultimate test is whether the advances in security can be consolidated and maintained."
Christofides agreed with the diagnosis of Ruiz Massieu, who remarked that "experience has shown that security operations, by themselves, cannot achieve lasting stabilization." Therefore, he defended the need to sustainably restore the presence of the State throughout the territory and to promote disarmament and reintegration programs, with special attention to minors recruited by the gangs.
The UN envoy also warned that prolonged insecurity jeopardizes the return to democratic order. The presidential and legislative elections, initially scheduled for December 13, have been postponed without a new date, in a country that has not held national elections since 2016.
Ruiz Massieu detailed that more than 35 political parties and groups have registered and around 3,500 candidates. However, as of October 5, only 759,257 potential voters were recorded in the registers, compared to an estimated census of 6.5 million people, a process of electoral organization seriously hindered by violence and internal displacement.
In this scenario, the United Nations representative in Haiti emphasized that "setting new dates for the elections without a realistic assessment of their viability will only serve to erode public trust and the credibility of Haitian institutions."