Haiti: Around 40 deaths in gang attack in Kenscoff
Armed gangs attacked a camp for displaced persons in a church in Kenscoff, near Port-au-Prince, killing around 40 people during the night of 23 to 24 August.
Deadly attack on displaced persons camp in church near Port-au-Prince
Around 40 people were killed during the night of Sunday 23 to Monday 24 August in Kenscoff, a municipality situated in the heights above Port-au-Prince, in an attack carried out by armed gangs against a camp for displaced persons set up in a church. Several dozen other victims were wounded or abducted, according to fr.aleteia.org.
The mayor of Kenscoff, Massillon Jean, confirmed the toll to the AFP on 24 August. "We have counted around 40 bodies. The search continues. Some people are still reported missing," he declared, describing the events as a "night of terror". The attackers "made an incursion into a camp for displaced persons situated in a church. They executed several people. We have recorded deaths and dozens of wounded. Some people were abducted," he added.
Prime Minister's office announces reinforcements
Faced with this surge in violence, the office of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé expressed, in a statement, its "profound compassion" for the victims and their families, and announced the deployment of reinforcements to restore security in the area.
Kenscoff has for several months been the scene of confrontations between armed groups seeking to expand their control in the region. Overlooking the Haitian capital, this municipality of around 50,000 inhabitants has been regularly affected by violence over the past two years.
1.5 million displaced in Haiti
Gang violence is causing mass displacement across the country. According to an estimate by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) published in June 2026, nearly 1.5 million people have been displaced in Haiti, out of a population of around 11 million inhabitants.
The crisis extends far beyond the capital. In July 2026, the Fides agency reported more than 2,600 people displaced in the Artibonite department following confrontations between armed groups. In the West department, the resumption of fighting in Cité Soleil in June had, according to the IOM, caused the displacement of more than 5,000 people. Nearly 8,000 people had already fled the confrontations in the northern quarters of Port-au-Prince in March and April, and around 5,300 others had been displaced in just three days in May, again according to the IOM.
A Gang suppression force being deployed
Haiti has long faced a political, economic and security crisis. Armed gangs are multiplying murders, abductions, rapes and the recruitment of children, whilst police forces struggle to regain control of territories. A Gang suppression force (FRG), supported by the United Nations, is to be progressively put in place to reinforce Haitian security forces, the AFP indicated. It should ultimately comprise 5,500 foreign police officers and military personnel. The number of personnel already deployed is not being disclosed.
The Catholic Church, a repeated target of gangs
The Catholic Church remains particularly exposed to this violence. In recent years, several priests and religious figures have been victims of abduction. In February 2023, Father Antoine was abducted by an armed gang before managing to escape. A month later, Father Jean-Yves was in turn kidnapped. In January 2024, six nuns and then six brothers of the Sacred Heart became hostages.
These repeated abductions show, according to geopolitician Jean-Baptiste Noé, "a total absence of morality on the part of the gangs, who attack anyone likely to bring them money". He added on Aleteia: "The Church being the only political structure that remains, if it is attacked, it is Haiti's last pillar that will collapse."
A bishop calls for hope
Beyond the violence, the Church is seeking to carry a message of hope to the population. In a letter addressed in January 2026 to Laurent Saint-Cyr, pro tempore president and coordinator of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT), Bishop Dumas, a Haitian bishop, evoked the injuries suffered during an explosion that occurred in 2025 in the house where he was staying in Port-au-Prince. Reported by the Fides agency at the end of January 2026, his letter drew a parallel between this personal ordeal and the "scars" left in Haiti by internal divisions and violence. The prelate affirmed his conviction that Haiti "would be reborn" and called on Haitians to choose "life, responsibility and hope".
Source: France 24 - France