Flash Report - Haiti - Gang Violence: 613 Killed and 375 Injured in the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac and Cité Soleil Between March and July 2026

This BINUH flash report covers the resurgence of armed violence in the commune of Cité Soleil and the adjacent Plaine du Cul-de-Sac between March 6 and July 31, 2026. The Human Rights Service (HRS) of BINUH attributes the fighting to the reconfiguration and weakening of the Viv Ansanm coalition combined with security-force pressure elsewhere in the capital, which pushed gang members into the Plaine and sharpened competition over illicit revenue. HRS corroborated at least 613 killings and 375 injuries: 64 percent of those killed or injured were associated with gangs and nearly a third were not, struck by stray bullets or targeted on suspicion of links to rival gangs or the security forces.

Ninety percent of casualties occurred in gang violence, about 9 percent during security-force operations and 1 percent in mob violence. More than 176 women and girls aged 10 to 71 were raped, including in gang rapes used as punishment of populations in rival-controlled areas, and the report notes these cases are likely underreported. The report describes the fighting in four phases, maps businesses and gang presence, and finds that several documented acts may amount to serious violations of international human rights law.

A chapter on the economic significance of the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac sets out the criminal economy of extortion, illegal taxes on commerce and control of supply routes, and names the firms still operating there, among them the Rhum Barbancourt distillery, the La Couronne and Séjourné breweries, Comme Il Faut, Flamengo Import-Export, BPH Industries and the private generator E-Power, alongside the Centre National d'Équipements. On the response, it records at least 20 law-enforcement operations between March 28 and July 12, including one on March 28 by a private military company using explosive drones, notes that the Gang Suppression Force patrolled but did not take part in anti-gang operations, and reports allegations of links between gang members and elements of the Haitian National Police.

Recommendations cover the accelerated deployment of the GSF, operationalizing two specialized judicial units for mass crimes and sexual violence, victim assistance, implementation of the 2021 DDR-CVR strategy, social protection in marginalized neighborhoods, and compliance and accountability in security operations.