Haiti: A multi-dimensional crisis leading to continued displacement
Haiti faces a multidimensional crisis with continuing gang violence, mass displacement, and severe humanitarian needs. Despite efforts toward stability, the situation remains dire, demanding urgent international solidarity.
3 October 2024 | Also available in: Français | Español
©UNHCR/Aurora Herrera
Indiscriminate gang violence in Haiti has led to an alarming escalation of human rights violations and large-scale internal displacement. Gang violence against the Haitian population has spread from the capital, Port-au-Prince, to isolated rural areas. The pervasive violence includes sexual violence, kidnapping, looting, roadblocks and forced recruitments by armed gangs, along with an increasing number of attacks on hospitals, schools, places of worship, and other critical social infrastructure.
Escalating violence and its far-reaching consequences
2010
A massive 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti killing more than 200,000 and displacing millions. Later that year, a cholera outbreak led to nearly 10,000 deaths and hundreds of thousands of infections.
2016
When Jovenel Moïse became President in 2016, his election faced accusations of fraud, leading to protests and political instability. The turmoil continued into July 2018, with large protests against Moïse over corruption, economic issues, and fuel shortages.
2021
July
President Jovenel Moïse is assassinated, plunging the country into a deep political crisis.
August
Haiti is struck by an earthquake of magnitude 7.2.
2021-2022
The assassination of President Moïse leaves a political vacuum, exacerbating an already volatile security situation. Gang violence, kidnappings, and general insecurity skyrocket, while acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry struggles to hold elections.
2023
January
After Haiti’s government fails to hold elections, citing unprecedented levels of gang violence, Haiti loses its last democratically elected officials.
2024
February
Gangs under the alliance Viv Ansamn execute coordinated assaults in Port-au-Prince to detain officials and obstruct Acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry's efforts to secure a UN-supported international security mission led by Kenya to combat gangs in the country.
March
Henry signs an agreement with Kenya to deploy 1,000 police officers to combat gang violence, however, the process is delayed by a court ruling that deemed the deployment is unconstitutional.
Gangs in Haiti continue to escalate their attacks, storming two of the country's biggest prisons and freeing more than 4,000 inmates. They also seized control over the area surrounding the international airport, leading to its closure for several months. In response, the Haitian Government declares a state of emergency.
Amid growing calls for his resignation, Henry travels to Puerto Rico on his way back from Kenya, announcing plans to step down once a transitional council is established. Henry’s plane remains blocked in Puerto Rico and unable to return to Haiti for security reasons.
April
The Kenyan government suspends deployment to Haiti until a new government is formed. A deal for a temporary government, which would last until February 2026, is proposed on April 7. On 25 April, Ariel Henry resigned, and was replaced by the Transitional Presidential Council.
May
The clashes between gangs and security forces continue but begin to decline in late May. On 28 May, the Transitional Council appoints Garry Conille as the new Prime Minister.
June
Haiti’s Transitional Council appoints a new cabinet on 11 June. On 26 June, Kenya's first contingent of 400 elite police officers landed in Port-au-Prince’s international airport after months of delay.
September
Haiti's government created a provisional electoral council on 18 September paving the way for the electoral process to be held by 2026.
The magnitude of the crisis is stark: almost half of Haiti’s 11.9 million civilians require humanitarian assistance. Gang violence and political instability have resulted in a record 702,973 people internally displaced, making Haiti the country with the largest number of displacements globally due to crime-related violence. In 2024, UNHCR reported more than 350,000 Haitian refugees and asylum-seekers worldwide, with many undertaking dangerous journeys across the Americas and the Caribbean.
There has been slow progress towards stability through the election of the Transitional Presidential Council and with the recent arrival of the first contingent of Kenyan police officers as part of the Multinational Security Support mission, there is a glimmer of hope for Haitians for some stability.
A comprehensive and sustainable long-term strategy will help to, to protect and support vulnerable populations, deliver essential services, strengthen Haitian capacity to invest in education, promote inclusive economic growth and job creation, and strengthen the rule of law. Humanitarian aid is critical to saving lives, and the humanitarian response needs to serve as a steppingstone to durable, sustainable recovery actions.