This afternoon (28 August), the Security Council will hold a briefing on Haiti. The urgent meeting was requested by Panama and the US (the penholders on Haiti), together with Colombia, after an overnight gang attack between 23 and 24 August in the commune of Kenscoff killed dozens of people. Special Representative and Head of the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) Carlos Ruiz Massieu and Acting Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Indrika Ratwatte are the anticipated briefers. Haiti and Brazil are expected to participate in the meeting under rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure.
According to the UN, the 23-24 August overnight gang attack in Kenscoff, a commune in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area that is home to a farming community, killed at least 47 people, 22 of whom were reportedly executed in a church compound where they had sought safety. Local authorities blamed the attack on members of the Viv Ansanm gang coalition, noting that they burned homes, raped women, and took more than 50 people hostage, in what is believed to be one of the largest mass kidnappings in Haiti in recent years. According to media reports, a gang leader has threatened to execute all the hostages if any security forces target gang members with drone strikes as they operate to secure Kenscoff. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that approximately 2,647 people were displaced due to the attack.
Kenscoff, which had previously been considered relatively safe, has witnessed about a dozen attacks since last year. The UN reported that assaults in the commune over two months in early 2025 saw more than 260 people killed and 200 homes destroyed, forcing some 3,000 people to flee. Between January and August, increased efforts by security forces in Kenscoff had lowered violence there by 66 percent compared with a year ago, according to the international non-profit organisation Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED). The 23-24 August overnight attack represents a sharp reversal of that trend.
Experts have noted Kenscoff’s strategic location on a hill overlooking the Pétion-Ville commune, a suburb of Port-au-Prince that contains most of the diplomatic premises and hotels that host government meetings. Some analysts have also argued that the gang attack in Kenscoff was intended to undermine confidence in the ability of Haitian security forces to promote stability, particularly in the run-up to the general elections that are scheduled for 13 December.
Additionally, experts maintain that the assault could be seen as a message to the international community as the Gang Suppression Force (GSF) begins its operations in Haiti. The Security Council authorised the GSF for an initial period of 12 months through resolution 2793 of 30 September 2025 as a non-UN multinational mission to combat armed gangs in Haiti. The GSF, which has an authorised personnel ceiling of 5,550, has yet to achieve full deployment. According to the Secretary-General’s latest BINUH report, as at 8 July, the GSF’s military component comprised 1,083 personnel, while the civilian component comprised 16 staff members. The GSF officially began operations on 1 June but has thus far operated only in a limited capacity. It is currently expected to reach full operational capacity between October and the end of the year.
At today’s meeting, Ruiz Massieu may echo the 25 August statement by Secretary-General António Guterres, which condemned the Kenscoff attack and stressed that “the relentless gang attacks on communities… underscore the alarming security conditions in Haiti and reinforce the urgent need to intensify Haitian and international security efforts to counter gangs”. The statement also called on the Haitian authorities to hold those who perpetrated the attack accountable, including through the specialised judicial units that were established in May.
Ruiz Massieu is also likely to situate the recent attack within the broader precarious security landscape in Haiti. A 6 August BINUH flash reportdescribed the resurgence of armed violence in parts of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area between 6 March and 31 July, with levels of violence not seen since January and February 2024. The report says that the violence has been driven by rivalries between gangs in the context of “the reconfiguration and weakening of the Viv Ansanm gang coalition and by increased pressure from the security forces in other parts of the capital”, which led to the displacement of gang members, “exacerbating tensions and competition for control over illicit revenue-generating opportunities” in the area of Plaine du Cul-de-Sac. During the reporting period, at least 613 people were killed and 375 injured, primarily during confrontations between gangs.
BINUH’s latest quarterly report on the human rights situation in Haiti, covering the period between April and June, warned that gang violence also remained particularly concerning outside the capital. For instance, in the Artibonite department, gangs continued their territorial expansion through indiscriminate attacks on localities, targeting residents inside their homes or in the streets as well as farmers working in their fields. Gang violence also reached the South-East department, where armed raids were documented for the first time. The report records other forms of gang-related violence, including the kidnapping of at least 81 people across the country, compared with 57 such instances in the previous quarter. It notes that at least 796 people were victims of rape, including 772 women and 23 girls, 87 percent of whom were subjected to gang rape. The report emphasises that the severity of the human rights situation in Haiti reinforces the “importance of keeping Haiti on the international agenda and accelerating the full deployment of the [GSF]”, a message that Ruiz Massieu may reiterate today.
Ratwatte is expected to describe the dire humanitarian situation in the country, where an estimated 6.4 million people—more than half of Haiti’s population—require emergency humanitarian assistance in 2026. Approximately 1.5 million people are internally displaced, including 751,000 children, according to a 20 August UNICEF update covering developments from 1 January to 30 June. Ratwatte may highlight the effects of violence on children, including their lack of access to education due to the closure of schools and their recruitment into armed gangs. He might also warn about heightened food insecurity in Haiti, as the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) reported that over 5.83 million people experienced high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above) between March and June. Ratwatte may describe the work carried out by the UN and its partners to provide humanitarian assistance, while emphasising the need for predictable and sustainable funding. As at August, the UN’s 2026 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for the country, requiring $880.3 million, was only 48.4 percent funded.
At today’s meeting, Council members are expected to strongly condemn the Kenscoff attack. Several members may argue that the continued deterioration of the security situation and the worsening human rights situation further highlight the need for more sustained Council attention on the file. Many members are expected to call for the protection of civilians, respect for international law, and accountability. Some might also stress the need to ensure that the international response, including that of the Council, extends beyond narrow security measures and addresses the interconnected drivers of violence. This would include, among other things, curbing the flow of arms into Haiti, strengthening the justice system and accountability mechanisms, and expanding prevention and reintegration initiatives for children and youth recruited by gangs. In this regard, some may also stress the need for effective implementation of the arms embargo on Haiti, which was initially established by resolution 2653 of 21 October 2022 and subsequently expanded through resolution 2699 of 2 October 2023.
Several members are expected to express support for the GSF and call for the swift deployment of additional contingents. Some of these members may also emphasise the importance of extending the GSF’s mandate ahead of its 30 September expiry.
