UN appeals for $674 million as gang violence in Haiti escalates with killings and sexual violence

Source: Associated Press

UN appeals for $674 million as gang violence in Haiti escalates with killings and sexual violence

BY EDITH M. LEDERER
Updated 8:55 PM EST, February 28, 2024

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Indiscriminate violence in Haiti is escalating — especially in the capital and surrounding region — with armed gangs carrying out killings and acts of sexual violence, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator in the conflict-wracked Caribbean nation said Wednesday.

Ulrika Richardson told U.N. reporters in a virtual press conference from the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, that “ the level of violence that people are exposed to is inhuman.”

In her many years working for the United Nations, Richardson said, “I’ve seen things here that I’ve never seen in my life,” that go beyond “your worst nightmare.”

It’s the suffering and pain that men, women and children are subjected to, she said, pointing to a 50% increase in sexual violence between 2022 and 2023, and the 314,000 Haitians who have now fled their homes to escape the violence, many living on the streets and in schools, and in need of humanitarian aid.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/haiti-un-violence-gangs-humanitarian-appeal-kenya-b7d86264415976013a65d977129a829b