At least 70 people were killed and 30 injured in a brutal gang attack in Haiti’s Artibonite region, a human rights organization said on Monday — far higher than earlier official reports. Police initially announced 16 fatalities and 10 injuries, and civil protection officials later estimated 17 dead and 19 wounded.
The Collective Defending Human Rights group put the toll much higher, describing the incident as a “massacre” and saying nearly 6,000 residents were forced to flee their homes. The group criticized local authorities for a lack of security response and said the failure to protect the Artibonite region amounted to neglect of responsibility.
A spokesman for United Nations Secretary‑General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned the attack at a Monday briefing, noting that reported death estimates varied widely, from about 10 to 80 victims. “This attack underscores the gravity of the security situation faced by the Haitian population,” the spokesman said, calling for a full investigation.
Local civil protection officials said armed members of the Gran Grif gang carried out the assault in the Jean‑Denis area at around 3 a.m. on Sunday. Artibonite, an important agricultural region, has seen some of Haiti’s worst violence as gang activity spreads beyond the capital, Port‑au‑Prince.
The attack follows UN reports that more than 2,000 people had been displaced by similar gang raids in nearby Verrettes, which also caused residents of Petite‑Rivière to flee. In March, the United States announced a reward of up to $3 million for information on the financial operations of the Gran Grif and Viv Ansanm groups; both have been designated terrorist organizations by Washington.
Haitian security forces, backed by a UN‑supported international mission and a US private military contractor, have stepped up operations against gangs that control much of the capital, but no major gang leader has yet been captured. Since 2021, gang violence has displaced more than one million people, worsened food insecurity, and resulted in nearly 20,000 deaths across Haiti, with the toll rising each year.
Edited by: Srinivas Mazumdaru