Clashes between armed gangs in Cité Soleil region of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, have killed, wounded and displaced hundreds. Photo: AA.
At least 99 people died and 135 were wounded last week in the violence generated by clashes between armed gangs in the metropolitan region of Port-au-Prince, capital of Haiti, reported the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Haiti on Friday, July 15.
The OCHA Haiti office also reported that more than 2,500 people have been newly displaced in the last seven days. In addition, 20 people are still missing, numerous cases of rape have been reported, and more than 100 homes have been destroyed.
Clashes broke out on July 7 between two of the main gangs operating in Port-au-Prince, the G-9 en famille et alliés and the G-Pep.
RELATED CONTENT: Haiti’s Cup of Tears is Filled to the Brim
Plus de 300 000 pers. en #Haïti sont prises au piège par les affrontements de gangs.
J'exhorte les parties prenantes à mettre fin à la violence qui menace l'accès de milliers de famille à l'eau, la nourriture et aux soins de santé, et pourrait provoquer une crise sans précédent.
— Martin Griffiths (@UNReliefChief) July 15, 2022
“More than 300,000 people in Haiti are trapped by gang violence,” said Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths, referring to the people terrorised by intergang clashes in Cité Soleil region of the Haitian capital.
RELATED CONTENT: Who Decides who Runs Haiti?
Griffiths called on the warring gangs “to put an end to the violence which threatens the access of thousands of families to water, food and medical care, and which could provoke an unprecedented crisis.”
OCHA had already warned about the complex situation in the area, even before the current conflict. The report highlighted that due to the volatility of the situation it is almost impossible to access the areas where the fighting is taking place and evacuate the wounded to hospitals.
Two months ago, another armed conflict caused nearly 200 deaths and hundreds of injuriesd and displaced approximately 17,000 people in Croix-des-Bouquets, Tabarre, and Cité Soleil regions of Port-au-Prince.
Foreign interference
Haiti has become a laboratory for a new form of foreign intervention, led by the United States and its allies, and also by multilateral organizations. For the last almost five years those who rule Haiti are the members of the Core Group, made up of the ambassadors from the United States, France, Spain, Brazil, Germany, Canada, and the EU, as well as representatives from the UN and the OAS. The Core Group does not govern Haiti directly; instead, its members exercise influence through the power of their diplomatic missions. The Core Group maintains control of all major political decisions in the country, and have responsibility over the current state of affairs in the embattled Caribbean nation.
(Telesur)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/SC/JRE
