Haiti government warns 1.5 million displaced by gang violence

Haiti’s government said about 1.5 million people are internally displaced as gang attacks continue across the country. In the Port‑au‑Prince metro area many have begun returning to their neighbourhoods, but in western communes such as Kenscoff and other provincial towns gangs still force hundreds to flee.

The foreign minister told the United Nations that three shelter sites in the capital have been closed, including the OPC facility in the Solino district where residents had received a 100,000‑gourde subsidy to rent new housing. A reconstruction plan for Solino is being implemented, emphasizing security guarantees and basic social services.

In the southern town of Gressier, authorities have demolished walls along National Road 2 to enable returns, though police do not yet control the northern entry. The mayor pledged to bring residents back to the town centre. In Kenscoff, gang control remains; a recent assault left three injured and one brigadier missing, but police repelled the attack and warned of further offensives toward Pétion‑Ville. In Mirebalais, local officials approved a plan to bring back displaced people, including the removal of the Canaan gang in exchange for dissolving the “Back up Ferrailles” self‑defense group, a process begun on 26 July 2026. Some displaced persons, after 17 months of flight, have expressed a desire to return, and the government affirmed that no coexistence with gangs will be allowed and that police will re‑establish control.