America Editorial.- Members of the Kokorat San Ras gang murdered at least 11 people this Monday in the commune of Gros-Morne, in the Haitian department of Artibonite, in retaliation for an operation by the Gang Suppression Force (GSF), backed by the UN, as reported by the local mayor Hubert Cénéac in a broadcast to the Haitian station Radio Kiskeya.
Cénéac explained in an interview with the local station Radio Kiskeya that a Sri Lankan unit, part of the GSF, expelled members of the group who had set up illegal toll booths in the area, hours before the first reports of deaths, and that the agents remained only a few hours in Gros-Morne before returning to their base in Gonaïves, the capital of Artibonite.
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“In retaliation, the gunmen sowed terror among the population. A dozen people lost their lives this morning in the Dosni neighborhood, and an attack was unleashed on the area, with shots fired in all directions, they killed and burned houses,” stated Cénéac.
Gros-Morne is a stronghold of Kokorat San Ras, one of the gangs that spread from Port-au-Prince to the Artibonite, the country’s main agricultural area.
Crisis in Haiti
Haiti is going through a security crisis that, according to the UN, is spreading increasingly outside the capital. According to the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), gang-related violence, including security operations, left more than 3,000 dead in the first half of 2026.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that nearly 1.5 million Haitians are displaced within the country, a record figure.
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In addition, the GSF mandate expires this week and the UN Security Council is scheduled to vote on its renewal this Tuesday.
