Increasing violence in Haiti by criminal groups and clashes with "self-defense" groups are contributing to the dangerous insecurity facing the country's population, Human Rights Watch said today. Criminal groups have been tightening their grip on Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, and expanding into other regions. Opposition leaders and "self-defense groups" have led violent protests against the transitional government.
The United Nations Security Council should urgently ensure that the UN-backed Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) receives the personnel and resources needed to fulfill its mandate, and agree on steps to transform the mission into a full-fledged UN operation with a mandate to protect human rights and prevent a further escalation of violence.
"Haiti's security situation is in a free fall and Haitians are suffering horrific abuses," said Nathalye Cotrino, senior Americas researcher at Human Rights Watch. "UN member states should immediately bolster the MSS's capacity and take urgent steps to transform it into a full-fledged UN mission."
Only 10 percent of Port-au-Prince remains under government control, with criminal groups escalating attacks since late 2024. Criminal groups have attacked key infrastructure, state institutions, schools, health centers, media outlets, and residential and commercial areas. They have also infiltrated neighborhoods near Pétion-Ville, one of the few areas not under their control, and where upper and middle classes live and the UN has its offices. Killings, kidnappings, sexual violence, and child recruitment have been reported almost daily, while police and the MSS struggle with insufficient funds and personnel.
Between late January and March 2025, at least 262 people were killed and 66 others injured in the southern Port-au-Prince communes of Kenscoff and Carrefour, according to the UN. Violence has also continued to affect the Artibonite Department, where more than 11 people were killed in Gros-Morne in late January, and the MSS suffered its first casualty in the commune of Petite-Rivière in late February. In late March and early April, violence spread to two cities in the Center Department, Mirebalais and Saut-d'Eau, where over 80 people were killed, the National Human Rights Defense Network informed. More recently, threats of imminent attacks against the nearby city of Hinche were reported.
Escalating criminal violence, compounded by clashes with "self-defense groups"-formed by community members often operating in collusion with police-and with law enforcement, has forced more than 90,000 people to flee their homes since the beginning of the year, the International Organization for Migration reported. Many international and domestic human rights and humanitarian organizations have also been forced to relocate or suspend operations, further affecting the 6 million Haitians in need of humanitarian assistance and worsening conditions for the 5.7 million people facing high levels of acute food insecurity, the highest number in recent years.
"People no longer have a safe place to flee to," an aid worker told Human Rights Watch. "Women who come here seeking help have not only lost loved ones, but have also been raped, displaced and left on the streets, starving and struggling to survive. We don't know how much longer they can endure such suffering … All [victims] ask is for the violence to stop. With no support from the police or government, they feel abandoned. They ask, 'Why is no one helping us? Why do Haitian lives not matter if we are human too?'"
The transitional government-with three of its members implicated in corruption-established a task force in early March to fight criminal groups, launching drone strikes with explosive munitions without accountability for abuses. Criminal leaders have also threatened to deploy this technology.
Members of the communities of Port-au-Prince, Pétion-Ville, and Kenscoff, as well as internally displaced people, have taken to the streets in the capital in recent weeks, calling for the ousting of the current government. "Self-defense" group members and police officers have joined some of the protests. In response, on April 7 the transitional government declared a new state of emergency, announcing, among other measures, increased security force resources.
The government's handling of the situation has instead led to the reemergence of opposition figures such as Claude Joseph, a former prime minister; Guy Philippe, a former police commander who served six years in a US prison on money laundering and drug charges; and Dimitri Hérard, former head of the General Security Unit of the National Palace, who was charged in relation to the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. All three have called for new protests.
Amid this growing instability, foreign governments have largely remained silent, Human Rights Watch said. Since UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' February 24 options paper with recommendations to the UN Security Council, no concrete action has been taken.
The paper called for the establishment of a UN support office, funded by assessed contributions, to provide logistical and operational support to the MSS to enhance its ability to conduct robust, targeted operations with the Haitian National Police against criminal groups. It also called for the MSS to be "scaled up in numbers and strengthened with additional military-grade capabilities and lethal equipment provided bilaterally by Member States to address current gaps," and for strengthened intelligence gathering and analytical capabilities. The secretary-general further requested UN support to non-UN security forces and programs to support those who choose to leave criminal groups and to support the Haitian authorities in investigating, prosecuting, and detaining high-risk people the MSS arrests.
On April 13, as reports emerge of criminal groups attempting to seize power, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) urged the international community to take urgent action to support Haitian authorities. The US State Department soon after expressed support for CARICOM and the MSS's efforts to help restore peace and stability. The same day, Haiti's transitional government reiterated its call for the UN Security Council to urgently consider "proposals for a significant strengthening of international support for the restoration of security in Haiti."
So far, no concrete steps have been taken to increase international support for the MSS, to implement the UN secretary-general's recommendations, or to conduct other efforts to improve security in Haiti, Human Rights Watch said. The US government, which was the primary funder of the MSS when it was established in 2023, has not provided principled leadership or direction, which foreign diplomats have widely perceived as a key factor behind the continued delay in meaningful deliberation or decision-making.
"Inaction would represent a catastrophic setback for foreign policy, following years of engagement and hundreds of millions of dollars in investment," Pierre Espérance, a Haitian human rights advocate, told Human Rights Watch by phone on April 16. "Immediate reinforcement of the Haitian Police and MSS with troops, helicopters, and resources is critical. Haitians are in agony without international support."
On April 21, the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti is expected to brief the UN Security Council on the situation in Haiti. It is crucial for Security Council members to discuss the need for UN member states to provide more personnel, funding, and equipment to the MSS, Human Rights Watch said.
The United States, the European Union, Canada, and other concerned governments across Latin America and beyond should urgently provide personnel and resources to bolster the MSS, Human Rights Watch said. They should also commit to a medium and long-term strategy that incorporates the UN secretary-general's recommendations, with the goal of transforming the MSS into a robust UN mission mandated to protect civilians and help restore stability and the rule of law in Haiti.
"The UN has the expertise to support Haitian efforts to restore basic security and start rebuilding the country, while upholding human rights and addressing the urgent needs of millions of people," Cotrino said. "But the window for action is closing."
