A contingent of 150 Guatemalan soldiers has deployed to Haiti to restore order amid escalating violence from armed gangs. The first group of 75 soldiers arrived on Friday, followed by another 75 on Saturday, all drawn from military police units.
Haiti has been under a state of emergency for several months as the government confronts violent gangs that have seized control of much of the capital, Port-au-Prince. The Guatemalan forces are joining a United Nations-backed security mission, spearheaded by Kenya, which has struggled to curb the rising violence.
Kenya previously dispatched nearly 400 police officers in June and July of the previous year as part of the international force, which is set to comprise 2,500 officers from various nations. Additional support has come from small contingents from Jamaica, Belize, and El Salvador.
The situation deteriorated significantly in March 2024 when armed gangs penetrated Haiti’s two largest prisons, resulting in the jailbreak of approximately 3,700 inmates. The Ouest Department, which includes Port-au-Prince, was first placed under a state of emergency on March 3, 2024, due to the surge in violent incidents.
Haiti has faced chronic instability and challenges, including natural disasters, leaving it the poorest nation in the Americas. The assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021 has further compounded the country’s turmoil, leading to economic disarray and rampant gang violence.
