Haiti: At least four dead after armed ambush on police officers

At least four people, three policemen and a civilian, were killed on Friday in Haitiduring a gang attack on a Police patrol, as the country’s authorities announced on Saturday.

“Four people were killed in this ambush: three policemen and a truck driver. Another policeman is missing and one was seriously injured and taken to a hospital in the capital”according to the announcement of the Haitian police.

The police patrol was heading to a suburb of Port-au-Prince, “to assist a relative of a police officer who was in danger,” the statement said.

Haiti has been mired in political and economic crisis for years. The assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July 2021 has worsened the situation, allowing gangs to consolidate their presence in several areas of the country.

Haiti’s police force numbered 13,000 last September, according to UN figures. In other words, there was almost one police officer per 1,000 inhabitants. As a result, it is unable to fight organized crime and heavily armed gangs have brought under their control almost half of the territory, human rights groups complain.

In early October, the Haitian government appealed for “international aid” to deal with the crisis.