Port-au-Prince, 11 November 2026 – Between 1 July and 30 September 2026, at least 1,167 people were killed and another 459 injured in Haiti, according to the latest quarterly report from the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH).
Serious human rights violations and abuses continue to be committed across the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, as well as in the Artibonite and South-East departments.
“The scale of the massacres documented during this period, particularly in Kenscoff and several other localities that had previously been spared, reminds us of the absolute need to strengthen both mechanisms for protecting the population and the presence of the State in recently liberated areas,” stressed the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General in Haiti and Head of BINUH, Carlos Ruiz Massieu.
The report establishes that, during the quarter, gang members were responsible for more than 45% of those killed or injured. In Port-au-Prince, they maintained their criminal grip on the neighborhoods under their control, carrying out targeted killings in retaliation for security operations, but also against people who refused to submit to extortion or were accused of violating their rules. Some people were also killed for denouncing attempts by gang leaders to interfere in the electoral process.
Gang members who had been driven out of neighborhoods such as Bel Air and La Saline by security force operations earlier in the year gradually regained a foothold in these areas and committed further abuses there.
Violent attacks linked to territorial struggles were also documented. In Cité Soleil, gang members beheaded at least 19 people, including 12 elderly women, in early August. In Kenscoff, two attacks carried out in July and August left at least 105 residents dead, including 19 children. Among the victims, more than 36 were shot dead in the courtyard of a Protestant church. Attacks were also documented in the communes of Saint-Michel-de-l’Attalaye (Artibonite) and Marigot (South-East), areas that had previously been largely spared gang infiltration.
Kidnappings and sexual violence also remained particularly concerning. During the quarter, at least 137 people were kidnapped for ransom, compared with 81 between April and June, with children accounting for 10% of the victims.
Furthermore, BINUH documented 344 victims of sexual violence perpetrated by gang members. The victims ranged in age from eight to 75. Of the documented cases, 77% involved gang rape. The report also highlights the continued recruitment and exploitation of children by gangs, while prevention and protection measures remain insufficient, despite efforts undertaken by Haitian authorities with the support of civil society actors and international partners. In August, at least 32 children, all boys aged 14 to 16 who had been forcibly recruited by a gang, were killed during exchanges of gunfire with security forces in the commune of Gressier.
Alongside this gang violence, BINUH estimates that 5% of killings and injuries were attributable to self-defense groups targeting gang members and people suspected of collaborating with them.
Finally, more than 50% of those killed or injured during the quarter were killed or injured during ground or aerial operations carried out by security forces against gangs, sometimes with the support of a private military company using drones. More than 16% of the victims of these operations were not associated with gangs. At least four people, including two children, were also killed and 10 others injured in attacks carried out using explosive drones.
Furthermore, BINUH documented 44 cases of extrajudicial executions and attempted extrajudicial executions involving members of the Haitian National Police (HNP), compared with 14 in the previous quarter. Despite this increase, the number of victims of extrajudicial executions or attempted executions during the first nine months of 2026 remains nearly half that documented during the same period in 2025. BINUH recalls that operations to combat gangs must be conducted in accordance with international human rights law and that alleged violations must be investigated.
On the judicial front, progress was made in operationalizing the two specialized judicial units responsible for mass crimes, including sexual violence, and financial crimes. BINUH nevertheless emphasizes the need to make these units fully operational and to begin the first trials without delay so that this institutional progress translates into concrete results in the fight against impunity.
Finally, the report calls on the Haitian authorities to strengthen protection and assistance mechanisms for people affected by violence, particularly survivors of sexual violence, and to accelerate programs aimed at preventing recruitment, as well as disarmament, dismantling and reintegration, particularly for children involved in gangs.
It also urges the international community to maintain its commitment to Haiti, accelerate the full deployment and operationalization of the Gang Suppression Force, in accordance with international human rights standards, and intensify efforts to prevent the illicit trafficking of arms and ammunition into the country.
