Hundreds of mourners packed a church in Kenscoff, a farming community southwest of Port-au-Prince, on Sunday to bury four of the 47 people killed in a devastating gang attack that has shaken Haiti and drawn international condemnation. Coffins arrived to scenes of grief — mourners wept, swayed to gospel music and raised their hands in anguish, with the crowd so large that dozens were forced to stand outside, peering through windows to pay their respects. Among those buried were a mother, a father and their son, and a 70-year-old man whose body had been set on fire by attackers.

Armed men stormed Kenscoff in the early hours of 23 August, killing at least 47 people and kidnapping more than 50 others in one of the largest mass atrocities in Haiti in recent years. According to the UN Human Rights Office, approximately 150 heavily armed gang members carried out the assault. They first killed 13 people who attempted to flee, then pursued dozens more who had sought refuge inside a church, executing 22 in the courtyard and 12 others behind the building. Dozens more were injured and more than 2,600 people were left homeless. Following intervention by community leaders and UNICEF, six children and seven women were released, but dozens of hostages remain in captivity.

Survivors and residents have taken to the streets in protest, accusing police of failing to act in time. "They didn't act in time to stop the carnage," said Yvon Marleus, who lost a cousin in the attack. Haiti's National Police has launched an investigation into whether the security failure stemmed from negligence or possible complicity. Outside the church during Sunday's funeral, armed civilians stood guard alongside officers, a grim symbol of how communities have been forced to take their own defence into their hands.

Pope Leo XIV condemned the massacre on Sunday, calling for the immediate release of all hostages and appealing to those responsible to "make a concrete commitment to ensuring the safety of the population." The attack has punctured a fragile sense of hope that security in Haiti was improving. Armed gangs now control an estimated 70% of Port-au-Prince and large swathes of surrounding territory, and have been pushing to extend their reach into areas like Kenscoff. The United Nations reports that more than 3,050 people were killed in Haiti in just the first six months of this year, with nearly 1.5 million people displaced by gang violence across the country.

For many survivors, the massacre has made staying unthinkable. "I'm ready to leave," said Jean Calixte Juste, who escaped the night of the attack by narrowly avoiding a ravine in the dark. "Because after this, I don't think we're going to survive another big attack." The funerals of the remaining victims have yet to be scheduled, leaving dozens of families still waiting to say goodbye.