Haiti Gang Violence Forces Temporary Closure of Hospital

The escalating gang violence in Haiti has led to the closure of one hospital in the nation's Cite Soleil district in Port-au-Prince.

BBC News reported that the said hospital was operated by the charity Medecins Sans Frontières, known for its abbreviation MSF. The medical charity Doctors Without Borders noted that the gang violence in Haiti's capital has forced the temporary shutdown of its hospital.

The medical charity added that Haitians looking for treatment had become "collateral victims" of the Haiti gang war occurring just meters from the hospital.

Field communication manager Alexandre Marcou noted that the closure leaves the impoverished neighborhood of Cite Soleil with just one privately run hospital and another MSF operation, which has been reducing its operations, as reported by France 24.

MSF medical advisor Vincent Harris said that their hospital has not been directly targeted by Haiti gangs but has been a "collateral victim of the fighting" ever since the hospital was placed on the frontline.

Marcou noted that one child on oxygen had died in a security room. Patients were delivered to the security room for protection from gunfire around the building.

A 70-year-old man was also shot across from the hospital as he tried to cross the street.

Haiti Gang Violence

The United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner noted in its report that extreme violence and gross human rights abuses have sharply increased in Cite Soleil, which was described to be "a living nightmare" for thousands.

Some of the human rights abuses in Haiti include mass incidents of murder, gang rape, and sniper attacks.

Volker Türk, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the findings of the report are "terrifying" and show a picture of how people "are being harassed and terrorized by criminal gangs" for months without the State being able to block it.

The report referred to incidents from July 8 to December 31, 2022, which resulted in 263 murders in Cite Soleil.

The U.N. report also documented at least 57 gang rapes and murders of 95 people, including six children.

Haiti Gangs

One of the Haitian gangs' powerful leaders was identified as Jimmy Cherizier. He is best known by his childhood nickname, "Barbecue."

Cherizier was also sanctioned by the United Nations for "serious human rights abuses" and was the man behind a fuel blockade that caused the chaos and decline of the Caribbean nation, according to PBS News Hour.

The gang leader, who was a former police officer, believed that he was a "revolutionary" advocating against a corrupt government, which left the nation crumbling.

Cherizier, the leader of "G9 Family and Families," said he is not a rapist nor a thief. He added that he is not involved in kidnapping activities.

The G9 leader said that he is just "carrying out a social fight," adding that he is a "threat to the system."

Gang violence in Haiti started to escalate after Jovenel Moïse's assassination.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: 'Democracy is dead': how gang violence has paralysed Haiti - from Guardian News