Hundreds of residents fled northern districts of Port-au-Prince over the weekend as intense gang clashes sent entire families into the streets, clutching mattresses, bags, and children as they sought safety along the road to the city's main airport. The violence erupted across several neighbourhoods, including Blanchard, Terre Noire, and Pierre 6, where gunfire forced people to flee overnight. "They put us in the street," said one resident, summing up the desperation felt by thousands caught between armed groups and a state widely seen as incapable of protecting its citizens.
The scale of the humanitarian toll was stark. Doctors Without Borders reported that its facilities in Cité Soleil and Croix-des-Bouquets — two of the capital's most embattled areas — were caught in crossfire, with medical teams treating more than 40 gunshot victims in just half a day. Even a hospital security guard was struck by a stray bullet. The organisation also temporarily sheltered around 800 displaced residents within one of its buildings. Anger toward the authorities ran high among those displaced. "The government of my country put me in this situation," said Sandra Saintus, standing amid her hastily gathered belongings on a roadside.
Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti — the Caribbean nation that shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic — has been sliding deeper into crisis since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, who was shot dead in his bedroom, leaving the country without a head of state and deepening a political vacuum that armed groups have exploited. Four individuals convicted of ordering the killing were sentenced last weekend. Gangs now control more than 90% of the capital, and more than 20,000 deaths linked to gang violence have been recorded in Haiti since 2021.
The international response has struggled to keep pace with the deteriorating situation. The United Nations Security Council approved a 5,550-member multinational stabilisation force, but deployment has been slow, with only a contingent from Chad arriving so far. UN peacekeepers already operating in the capital face additional obstacles, including severely degraded roads that limit their ability to patrol effectively and no major gang leaders yet arrested.
The human cost is immense. The International Organization for Migration estimates that more than 1.4 million Haitians have been displaced by gang activity, with around 200,000 now living in overcrowded and underfunded sites in the capital alone — conditions aid workers warn are worsening week by week. For the families who lined the road to Toussaint Louverture International Airport on Monday, unsure of where to go next, the violence offers no clear end in sight.