Gangs unleash attacks in Haiti’s capital, at least a dozen killed

Gunmen looted homes in the communities of Laboule and Thomassin before sunrise, forcing residents to flee as some called radio stations pleading for police.

People walk past the body of a man who, along with others, was shot dead earlier in the morning, amid an escalation in gang violence, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti March 18, 2024. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Gangs attacked two upscale neighbourhoods in Haiti’s capital early Monday, March 18, 2024, in a rampage that left at least a dozen people dead in surrounding areas.

Gunmen looted homes in the communities of Laboule and Thomassin before sunrise, forcing residents to flee as some called radio stations pleading for police.

The neighbourhoods had remained largely peaceful despite a surge in violent gang attacks across Port-au-Prince that began on February 29.

An Associated Press photographer saw the bodies of at least 12 men strewn on the streets of Pétionville.

“Abuse! This is abuse!” cried out one Haitian man who did not want to be identified as he raised his arms and stood near one of the victims.

The most recent attacks raised concerns that gang violence would not cease despite Prime Minister Ariel Henry announcing nearly a week ago that he would resign once a transitional presidential council is created, a move that gangs had been demanding.

Gangs have long opposed the Prime Minister Henry, saying he was never elected by the people as they blame him for deepening poverty, but critics of gangs accuse them of trying to seize power for themselves or for unidentified Haitian politicians.

Also on Monday, Haiti’s power company announced that four substations in the capital and elsewhere “were destroyed and rendered completely dysfunctional”. As a result, swaths of Port-au-Prince were without power.

In a bid to curb the relentless violence, Haiti’s government announced Sunday that it was extending a nighttime curfew through March 20.