UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the Security Council on Thursday that state authority is collapsing in Haiti as gang violence spreads across the country, disrupting daily life and forcing families to flee their homes.
Guterres said that the ongoing armed conflict has created a humanitarian and displacement crisis, leaving six million people in need of assistance. He also stressed that Haiti faced one of the world’s most severe hunger crises, yet its humanitarian appeal is the least funded globally, with only 10 percent of the required resources received. As a result, 1.7 million people risk not receiving aid as armed groups continue to block access and target humanitarian workers. Additionally, the collapse of essential services, such as education, healthcare and security, has further worsened the situation.
Additionally, the head of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Catherine Russell, raised concerns about the alarming situation of Haiti’s youth. She highlighted a rise in violence against youth as the Caribbean nation recorded an increase of 500 percent in violations against children in 2024, which included summary executions and recruitment by armed groups. Consequently, she urged the Security Council to take concrete measures to protect Haiti’s children and to prevent the escalation of violence.
The secretary-general emphasized that international support is essential to support the efforts of Haiti’s authorities to restore security and to maintain the gains achieved through the work of the Security Council-backed Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS). He proposed to strengthen the MSS by providing logistical and operational support and called for the implementation of an international UN-backed force. Guterres also added that supporting Haiti requires an increase in financial assistance to allow the provision of humanitarian aid.
Haiti has experienced an armed conflict between the state’s security forces and armed gangs since 2020, which has resulted in widespread instability. Gang violence has escalated over the last years, leading to a surge in abductions, kidnappings, and mass displacement, which threaten both national and regional security. Despite the responses of Haiti’s National Police and security units backed by the MSS, armed gangs continued to expand their territorial control across the country. This lack of security resulted in a humanitarian crisis characterized by famine, abuses against children, and other human rights violations. In March, a UN expert called on the international community to reassess its response to Haiti’s worsening crisis and to strengthen the multinational security support.
