The Death Toll From Haiti's Armed Gang Massacre Increased To 70 People

ILLUSTRATION/Petionville, Haiti/UNSPLASH/Reynaldo Mirault

JAKARTA - Gunmen who joined the Gran Grif gang killed 70 people as they passed the city of Pont-Sonde in Haiti. They opened fire on residents with automatic rifles.

"We were horrified by the gang's attack on Thursday in the city of Pont-Sonde in Haiti's Artibonite department," said spokesman for the United Nations Human Rights Office (UN) Thameen Al-Kheetan in a statement.

According to the United Nations, 16 people were seriously injured in an attack on Thursday morning when gang members reportedly burned 45 houses and 34 vehicles, forcing residents to flee their homes.

People who are members of a gang led by Luckson Elan, 36, who were sanctioned by the United Nations last month, set fire to buildings and executed people on the streets, local media reports Le Nouvelliste said.

The city of Pont-Sonde is located in Haiti's food barn Artibonite and built around a bridge at a crossroads that connects the capital city with the northern region.

Meanwhile, the number of internally displaced persons due to the conflict has surged past 700.000 people, nearly doubling in six months despite the deployment of part of the UN-backed mission mandated to help police who lack resources restore order.

Neighboring the Dominican Republic said on Wednesday it would increase migrant deportation by up to 10,000 per week, citing the slow and limited progress of security missions, which the Haitian government first requested in 2022.