UN condemns gang massacre in Kenscoff, Haiti: at least 47 dead
A gang coalition attacked the hillside community of Kenscoff near Port-au-Prince, killing at least 47 people, including 22 executed in a church. The UN Secretary General has condemned the attack.
Gang coalition kills at least 47 in Kenscoff church massacre
The Jamaica Observer reports that UN Secretary General António Guterres on Tuesday condemned a deadly gang assault on the hillside community of Kenscoff, overlooking Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The attack, carried out on Sunday night, left at least 47 people dead, including 22 who were reportedly executed inside a church compound where residents had sought refuge.
The Viv Ansanm coalition, a powerful alliance of criminal gangs, is being blamed for the violence. Video footage circulating on social media shows gang members storming Kenscoff's town centre, attacking residents, and setting fire to vehicles and homes. Bludgeoned bodies were visible in pools of blood.
Kenscoff's Mayor Jean Massillon told reporters on Monday that "it was a night of terror."
UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric told the daily news briefing that the secretary general is calling on Haitian authorities to hold those responsible to account, "including through the specialised judicial units, recently created with international support to investigate mass crimes."
Dujarric said UN humanitarian colleagues on the ground are working with local communities and authorities to verify information and assess needs in the aftermath of what he described as "horrendous violence."
The UN stated that the relentless attacks on communities and the ongoing loss of life underscore an alarming security situation in Haiti and reinforce the urgent need to intensify both Haitian and international efforts to counter gang activity.
A recent UN Integrated Office in Haiti report found that during the second quarter of 2026 — April through June — at least 1,408 people were killed and 656 others injured due to violence across the country. Gang attacks accounted for more than half of all recorded killings and injuries during that period.
Dujarric stressed the importance of keeping Haiti on the international agenda and called for the accelerated full deployment of the Gang Suppression Force. He also reiterated that all use of force by law enforcement or actors operating on behalf of the state must comply with international human rights law.
Source: Jamaica Observer