Update on Haiti

Gang violence is the biggest threat to Haitians. Many people are watching the new UN-backed Gang Suppression Force and hoping it will bring real change. There are reasons this effort may be stronger than the last one. The earlier Kenya-led mission never reached its planned size and struggled with funding, equipment delays, and limited operational capacity.

This new force has a broader mandate. It can carry out operations against gangs and arrest suspected gang members without requiring Haitian police to accompany every mission. It also has a dedicated UN Support Office to help with logistics that were a major roadblock before, including medical support, fuel, transportation, communications, rations, housing, and support for bases and operations.

In June, the force began moving from planning into ground operations. It has started patrols, established its first forward operating base in a strategic area, and begun early operations against gang infrastructure.

The force has also presented a two-year roadmap with specific goals: dismantling gang strongholds, removing checkpoints, reopening transportation corridors, protecting critical infrastructure, making arrests, and establishing permanent operational bases.

Still, it is very early. The force currently has about 1,000 security personnel on the ground, with a goal of reaching 5,500 by October. Gangs still control much of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, more than 2,300 people have been killed since the beginning of 2026, and nearly 1.5 million people have been displaced. So we are hopeful, but realistic. Haiti is still in crisis, and daily life for families remains extremely fragile.

At a time when so many schools have been forced to close, this graduation gives us something real to celebrate. It does not mean the crisis is over. It means that, even in the middle of it, children can still be protected, fed, educated, and carried all the way to graduation when people continue to show up for them.