UN: New wave of displacement in Haiti after deadly Artibonite attacks

The United Nations (UN) on Tuesday reported that recent violence in Haiti’s Artibonite department has triggered a new wave of displacement in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (Caricom) country.

Late last month, criminal gangs in Jean-Denis, in the Artibonite region, carried out a series of attacks that left at least 16 people dead and several others injured.

The Gran Grif gang, one of Haiti’s most feared criminal organisations, was reportedly behind the deadly assaults, forcing more than 6,000 people to flee the area.

Both the United States and Canada condemned the attacks.

UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric told the daily news briefing that, based on reports from humanitarian colleagues in Port-au-Prince, several people have been displaced as a result of the violence.

Dujarric said that according to the latest estimates from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 13,000 people have been displaced in the impacted areas.

“Most of them, four out of five, have sought shelter with host families, while the rest have settled in 16 displacement sites.

“Together with authorities and our partners, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is supporting people in need, but access constraints and limited resources continue to hamper the humanitarian response,” he added.

Gang violence has ravaged Haiti since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse on July 7, 2021, contributing to worsening humanitarian conditions and growing displacement across the country.