Haiti

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations announced $60 million in additional humanitarian assistance to Haiti during a trip Monday to the troubled Caribbean country. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield also said the U.S. Defense Department would provide a “substantial increase” in mine-resistant vehicles to a U.N.-backed, multinational security mission led by Kenya to help Haiti’s national police combat widespread gang violence.

The multifaceted humanitarian catastrophe in Haiti requires urgent international attention, three senior aid officials from the United Nations and the European Union have said, wrapping up a four-day visit to the Caribbean country where they saw firsthand how ongoing gang violence has upended people’s lives. 

A second contingent of 200 police officers from Kenya arrived Tuesday in Haiti to bolster a U.N.-backed mission led by the East African country to battle violent gangs in the troubled Caribbean country.

The Security Council today extended the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) until 15 July 2025, requesting all Haitian stakeholders to urgently establish a Provisional Electoral Council and reach an agreement on a sustainable, time-bound and commonly accepted road map for elections.

[…] UN Special Representative Carlos Ruiz Massieu told ambassadors that “insecurity is clearly the main obstacle to reintegration and the success of the Peace Agreement”. 

He said 421 signatories have been killed since it was signed.

The leader of the multinational force led by Kenya tasked with curbing gang violence in Haiti expressed determination Monday to ensure democratic elections and prevent further instability in the country.

Maria Isabel Salvador, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Haiti, briefed ambassadors at the Security Council, highlighting the installation of the Transitional Presidential Council in April and the swearing-in of an interim Prime Minister and new government in June as “clear indications of progress.” 

Hundreds of Kenyan police officers departed for Haiti on Monday to lead a multinational force aimed at combating powerful gangs responsible for a surge in deadly violence this year. … The initial group of 400 officers is part of the 1,000 that Kenya plans to send to Haiti for the United Nations-led force. 

Overriding Republican opposition in Congress, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has ordered the release of $109 million in US funds to pay for a UN-approved and Kenyan-led police support mission tasked with reining in rampant gangs and restoring order in Haiti. … Eight other countries have pledged to contribute personnel: The Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Chad, Jamaica, and Suriname.

A team of Haitian police commanders on Tuesday met Kenya's inspector general of police ahead of a planned deployment to the violence-hit Caribbean country expected to take place by the end of June. … The deployment that was set to take place in May was postponed to allow completion of bases from which the officers will operate and the procurement of key equipment, including vehicles.