UN Plans to Send Forces to Fight Gangs in Haiti

(TheConservativeTimes.org) – For the first time in almost two decades, the United Nations Security Council authorized the deployment of an international military force to Haiti headed by Kenya to assist in battling violent gangs.

Reports say the resolution grants the force a one-year deployment mandate, with a review to take place after nine months. It has been nearly a year after the prime minister of Haiti sought an armed force to calm a rise in violence by gangs and restore security in preparation for long-delayed elections. Gangs increasingly gained control of the nation, leading to an increase in killings, kidnappings, and rapes that, in turn, exacerbated the country’s already dismal economic situation and caused widespread food insecurity.

A security mission to Haiti might deploy within months, according to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, but no timetable has been established.

At the same time, Kenya’s Foreign Minister Alfred Mutua said this week that the force may deploy by next January.

There is a proposal to deploy 1,000 police personnel from the Kenyan government. Antigua and Barbuda, Jamaica, and the Bahamas have also promised to deploy troops.

The U.S. government has pledged $100 million and logistical assistance for the Kenyan-led force, which they announced last month.

As Prime Minister Ariel Henry has pledged repeatedly since President Jovenel Mose was killed in July 2021, the arrival of an armed force is anticipated to reestablish peace and security in Haiti and allow for the holding of long-awaited national elections.

Reports show that when the final ten senators in Haiti’s Senate left in January, the nation was left without a single representative in either the House of Representatives or the Senate. Henry has been in power with support from abroad.

Reports show the UN will encounter a formidable obstacle since many people will question the organization’s capacity to effectively battle the Haitian gangs because of the UN’s own history of atrocities.

According to UN figures, over 2,400 Haitians were murdered this year, with another 950 reported abducted and 902 injured. Jimmy Chérizier, the most prominent gang leader and a former police officer nicknamed “Barbecue,” has been calling for an armed rebellion to overthrow Henry for the last month.