GENEVA - A new UN Human Rights Office report published on Tuesday details the human rights impacts of the expanding reach of gangs in Haiti, including their control over key sea and road routes, amid persistent deadly violence. The violence involves gangs, security forces, private security contractors, and self-defence groups.
According to data verified by the Office, at least 5,519 people were killed in Haiti and 2,608 injured between 1 March 2025 and 15 January 2026. Violence perpetrated by gangs has resulted in at least 1,424 people killed and 790 injured; operations against gangs led by security forces have caused at least 3,497 people to be killed and 1,742 injured; and attacks against gangs by self-defence groups have caused at least 598 people to be killed and 76 injured.
During the past 12 months, gangs have expanded beyond the capital Port-au-Prince, pushing into its outskirts and moving north into the Artibonite and Centre departments, the report states. Gangs have been able to "fortify strategic corridors and maintain dominance over critical maritime and overland routes that sustain their financing and operational resilience," the report finds.
Gangs have terrorized the population by killing and kidnapping people, trafficking children, stealing at illegal checkpoints, extorting money from businesses, and destroying and ransacking public and private properties. Gangs targeted individuals perceived as cooperating with police or defying their authority. Some victims were executed, their bodies often doused with gasoline and burned. Others were subjected to gang-organized "trials", arbitrarily held captive, and at times forced to pay fines to secure their release.
"Gangs continued using sexual violence to spread fear among, subjugate, and punish the population," the report adds, detailing grave abuse on an appalling scale.
Between 1 March 2025 and 31 December 2025, at least 1,571 women and girls were victims of sexual violence, mostly gang rape. Others, including children, were coerced into so-called "sentimental relationships" with gang members and subjected to prolonged sexual exploitation and abuse.
The report also documents instances of unnecessary or disproportionate use of force by police. Between 1 March 2025 and 15 January 2026, it identifies 247 instances of actual or attempted summary executions of suspected gang members or individuals believed to support gangs, resulting in the deaths of 196 people and injuries to 51 others.
Since March 2025, a private military company, reportedly hired by the Haitian Government, has taken part in security operations, including using drone strikes and helicopter gunfire. Some, or even most, of these drone strikes and helicopter operations could be described as targeted killings, given the apparent predetermined, intentional, and deliberate use of lethal force against individuals specifically identified in advance."
"No investigation appears to have been opened by the judicial authorities to establish the legality of these operations and the circumstances in which the killings and injuries occurred," says the report, adding that "no accountability mechanism appears to have been put in place to enable victims and members of the population to access effective remedies and justice."
States are accountable for the actions of private military and security companies they employ to perform security functions on their behalf. Such companies must comply with the same international human rights obligations as national police and States, and are required to prevent, investigate, and address serious violations committed by them.
The report also details violence perpetrated by self-defence groups and mobs engaging in so-called "popular justice". Armed with stones, machetes, and, increasingly, high-calibre firearms, these groups have lynched individuals suspected of gang affiliation, as well as others deemed to have committed crimes. "Some killings were allegedly encouraged, supported, or facilitated by police elements," says the report.
"It is essential for authorities to provide security while fully upholding human rights," said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.
The report acknowledges some progress in the functioning of the justice system, particularly efforts towards operationalizing two specialized judicial units to prosecute mass crimes, including sexual violence. "Nevertheless, judicial progress in cases involving corruption and gang financing remains limited," and "impunity for human rights violations and abuses continues to prevail," says the report.
"Efforts to further bolster the rule of law, particularly in the justice and detention sectors, must remain a priority to be able to tackle corruption and impunity, as these undermine the trust of the people," said Türk.
The report notes the creation by the UN Security Council of the new Gang Suppression Force (GSF), subject to a robust compliance mechanism to prevent, investigate, address, and publicly report on potential human rights violations committed by its personnel.
"The Gang Suppression Force can only be effective in the long-term if there are also stronger efforts to identify, detain, investigate, and prosecute, in accordance with international standards, those who fund, organize, and support the gangs' activities," said the UN Human Rights Chief.
"It is also crucial for measures to be taken to reduce the large socio-economic disparities in Haiti as part of a wider process to restore social cohesion."
To read the full report, click here
