Haiti: gangs leave more than 2,300 dead in 2026

Gang violence in Haiti has caused at least 2,300 deaths, 1,100 injuries and 99 kidnappings since the beginning of 2026, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, who called for stepping up the deployment of the international force in the poorest country in the Americas.

A crisis that does not let up

Haiti has been mired for years in violence from criminal gangs that commit murders, rapes, looting and kidnappings. The High Commissioner urged the authorities to “act quickly to establish judicial structures that allow fighting impunity,” at a time when gangs control large areas of the capital and have extended their influence to inland departments.

The new international force

In September, the UN Security Council decided to replace the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) with the Gang Suppression Force (FRG), which could count on up to 5,500 uniformed personnel, including police and military. Türk called for “continuing to deploy” that force, although in practice the number of personnel present remains well below the authorized quota.

What is at stake for the region

The Haitian crisis is not only internal: more than 1.4 million people are displaced inside the country and the instability pressures the entire region, including the Dominican Republic, which shares the island and has toughened its migration policy in the face of the constant flow. Restoring security and an electoral calendar are conditions the international community repeats at every Security Council meeting.

The key figure

Behind the big numbers are concrete lives: 2,300 deaths in just over seven months equals more than ten deaths a day from gang violence. Until the FRG reaches its full strength and judicial institutions are rebuilt, impunity will keep feeding the cycle of violence that keeps Haiti on the brink of collapse.