{ "id": "haiti-gang-crisis", "title": "Haiti's gang crisis", "category": "war", "countries": [ { "iso3": "HTI", "name": "Haiti" }, { "iso3": "SLV", "name": "El Salvador" } ], "status": "Gangs still control most of Port-au-Prince as more than 2,000 Salvadoran troops back Haitian police east of the capital, and Prime Minister Fils-Aime has praised the Nov 8 strike on 400 Mawozo's headquarters. The first round of elections has been moved to July 18, 2027.", "summary": [ "Armed gangs expanded after President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated in 2021, and Haiti has held no national election since 2016. The UN says gangs control as much as 90% of Port-au-Prince, while AP puts the figure at about 70%. Since the Transitional Presidential Council stepped down on Feb 7, 2026, Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé has held executive power alone. A UN-authorized Gang Suppression Force succeeded the Kenyan-led mission, with troops arriving from April 2026; as of Oct 12 it had 1,563 of 5,550 authorized personnel, and its mandate runs to March 2027. After four Salvadoran aviation technicians serving with the force went missing in an Oct 18 ambush in Croix-des-Bouquets, El Salvador sent more than 2,000 soldiers, most of them outside the UN framework. The electoral council moved the first round of voting from Dec 13 to July 18, 2027. The UN counts nearly 1.5 million people displaced, and an IPC analysis finds 5.94 million facing acute hunger." ], "why_it_matters": { "text": "Nearly 1.5 million Haitians, including more than 740,000 children, are displaced, and the UN-authorized Gang Suppression Force had 1,563 of its 5,550 authorized personnel as of Oct 12, 2026.", "source_url": "https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/10/1168626" }, "changed_recently": [ { "text": "The Haitian Times reports that Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele defended his troops' operations in Haiti. He also publicly criticised a US diplomat who had raised concerns about coordination. Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime praised El Salvador after the Nov 8 strike on the home of 400 Mawozo leader Wilson Joseph and the gang's headquarters in Croix-des-Bouquets (BBC News, HaitiLibre). HaitiLibre said Salvadoran helicopters fired rockets at the site. The Miami Herald's report of 20 dead, which cited anonymous sources, has not been confirmed. Separately, HaitiLibre reported that only 48 political organisations met the registration requirements to nominate candidates.", "sources": [] } ], "key_numbers": [ { "label": "Haitians facing acute hunger (IPC Phase 3 or worse)", "value": "5.94 million, including 1.8 million in emergency conditions", "who_says": "IPC food security analysis released Oct 28", "as_of": "2026-10-28", "source_url": "https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/29/el-salvador-pledges-more-than-2000-soldiers-as-haiti-delays-elections" }, { "label": "People killed and injured in gang-related violence, July to early October 2026", "value": "1,123 killed, 440 injured", "who_says": "UN figures presented to the Security Council", "as_of": "2026-10-19", "source_url": "https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/10/1168626" }, { "label": "Salvadoran troops sent to Haiti since late October", "value": "more than 2,000, of whom about 200 fall under the UN-backed force", "who_says": "Salvadoran government; UN spokesman for the share under the Gang Suppression Force", "as_of": "2026-11-05", "source_url": "https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/5/el-salvadors-bukele-touts-military-intervention-in-haiti" } ], "expert_views": [ { "name": "Romain Le Cour", "role": "Analyst, Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime", "view": "He says the Salvadoran force's rules of engagement, chain of command, goals and duration remain unclear, and that its numbers will exceed the UN-backed force's, raising questions about that force's future.", "outlet": "Associated Press (via ABC News)", "url": "https://abcnews.com/International/wireStory/haiti-announces-new-election-dates-2000-salvadoran-troops-137674662", "date": "2026-10-29" }, { "name": "Ana Piquer", "role": "Americas director, Amnesty International", "view": "She urged Haiti and El Salvador to publish the agreement governing the deployment, explain its oversight and use-of-force rules, and open independent investigations into any alleged abuses.", "outlet": "Al Jazeera", "url": "https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/10/salvadoran-troops-target-haitian-gang-leaving-20-dead", "date": "2026-11-10" } ], "confidence": { "level": "medium", "reason": "Election dates, the size of the Salvadoran deployment and UN casualty and displacement figures are well documented. The toll of the Nov 8 strike rests on anonymous sources, the fate of the four missing Salvadorans is disputed, and estimates of gang control of the capital range from about 70% (AP) to 90% (UN, via Al Jazeera)." }, "sources": [ { "outlet": "The Haitian Times", "outlet_country": "US (Haiti coverage)", "date": "2026-11-11", "url": "https://haitiantimes.com/2026/11/11/bukele-defends-haiti-gang-operations-amid-pressure/" }, { "outlet": "BBC News", "outlet_country": "UK", "date": "2026-11-11", "url": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cmvg2xdwnwezo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss" }, { "outlet": "HaitiLibre", "outlet_country": "Haiti", "date": "2026-11-11", "url": "https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-48868-haiti-flash-helicopters-from-el-salvador-fire-rockets-at-the-residence-and-headquarters-of-lanmo-san-jou-video.html" }, { "outlet": "HaitiLibre", "outlet_country": "Haiti", "date": "2026-11-10", "url": "https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-48861-icihaiti-elections-only-48-political-entities-may-nominate-candidates-list.html" }, { "outlet": "UN News", "outlet_country": "UN", "date": "2026-10-19", "url": "https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/10/1168626" }, { "outlet": "Al Jazeera", "outlet_country": "Qatar", "date": "2026-10-29", "url": "https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/29/el-salvador-pledges-more-than-2000-soldiers-as-haiti-delays-elections" }, { "outlet": "Africanews", "outlet_country": "Congo-Brazzaville (Euronews)", "date": "2026-10-30", "url": "https://www.africanews.com/amp/2026/10/30/haiti-announces-new-election-dates-as-el-salvador-sends-troops-to-rescue-missing-soldiers/" }, { "outlet": "Fox News", "outlet_country": "US", "date": "2026-11-04", "url": "https://www.foxnews.com/world/bukeles-warning-haitian-gang-leaders-forces-finish-el-salvador" }, { "outlet": "Associated Press (via KSAT)", "outlet_country": "US", "date": "2026-11-06", "url": "https://www.ksat.com/news/world/2026/11/07/powerful-haitian-gang-reaches-out-to-state-disarmament-group-as-gunfights-persist/" }, { "outlet": "Al Jazeera", "outlet_country": "Qatar", "date": "2026-11-07", "url": "https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2026/11/7/one-less-gang-leader-haitis-prime-minister-celebrates-police-operation" }, { "outlet": "The Haitian Times", "outlet_country": "US (Haitian diaspora outlet)", "date": "2026-11-07", "url": "https://haitiantimes.com/2026/11/07/haitians-rally-behind-bukele-salvadoran-troops-gangs/" }, { "outlet": "Al Jazeera", "outlet_country": "Qatar", "date": "2026-11-10", "url": "https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/10/salvadoran-troops-target-haitian-gang-leaving-20-dead" } ], "updated": "2026-11-11", "page": "https://verorbis.com/e/haiti-gang-crisis/", "interactive": "https://verorbis.com/#e-haiti-gang-crisis", "license": { "text": "Summaries and curation: CC BY 4.0. Cite \"Verorbis\" and link to https://verorbis.com/e/haiti-gang-crisis/.", "third_party": "Numbers from third parties keep their own licenses and credit lines.", "credits": [ "UCDP Candidate Events Dataset (CC BY 4.0), Uppsala Conflict Data Program", "UNHCR Refugee Population Statistics Database (CC BY 4.0)", "World Bank World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)", "V-Dem via Our World in Data (CC BY-SA 4.0)", "Harvard Growth Lab, Atlas of Economic Complexity (CC0)", "GDELT Project", "U.S. Energy Information Administration and Federal Reserve, via FRED", "European Central Bank reference rates; US Treasury daily par yield curve; Federal Reserve Bank of New York (EFFR)" ] } }