Surging gang violence in Haiti has caused a threefold rise in the number of people uprooted from their homes in a year, the UN migration agency, IOM, said on Tuesday, in a call for “sustained humanitarian assistance right now to save and protect lives”.
Latest data from the International Organization for Migration indicates that more than one million people have been displaced across Haiti so far, up from the 315,000 recorded on 20 December 2023.“The most concrete data we have is that around 1,041,000 people are currently living in displacement in Haiti. Most of these people have been displaced multiple times,” said IOM spokesperson Kennedy Okoth Omondi.
The majority of those forced to flee their homes left the capital Port-au-Prince, where heavily armed gang violence is “relentless” while essential services have collapsed – “particularly healthcare and worsening food insecurity”, Mr. Omondi continued.
Neighbouring provinces have also been impacted by gang violence and an influx of Haitians fleeing spiralling insecurity. “Many are seeking refuge in Haiti’s provinces, overwhelming host communities and straining limited resources,” the IOM spokesperson said. “In the Artibonite department, displacement tripled in 2024, reaching over 84,000 people, highlighting the spread of violence beyond the Haitian capital.”
