A deadly shooting in Haiti on Tuesday claimed the lives of law enforcement officers and journalists. A local radio station reported that the incident occurred during a ceremony in the nation’s capital. Gang members armed with guns opened fire on the country’s largest hospital as government officials prepared for a press conference announcing its reopening.
A video circulating on social media shows Haiti’s most powerful gang leader claiming responsibility for the attack. He denied that his coalition had authorized the hospital’s reopening. Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council issued a statement expressing condolences to the victims’ families, particularly those of the Haitian National Police and journalists. The council did not, however, provide a confirmed number of wounded.
This summer, the Haitian government regained control of the hospital in Port-au-Prince after it had been closed due to deadly gang attacks. Officials estimate that gangs control at least 80% of Haiti’s capital, placing the country’s healthcare system in a precarious situation. Looting and fires have destroyed vital medical facilities at a time of critical need.
Gang violence has plagued the Caribbean country since 2022. A United Nations report released on December 23rd detailed a brutal attack earlier in the month, in which gang members killed 134 men and 73 women in Port-au-Prince over four days. The report states that the majority of victims were elderly individuals accused of practicing voodoo and causing the illness of a gang leader’s child. Gang members burned or dismembered the bodies in an attempt to conceal evidence. The U.N. estimates that over 5,300 people have been killed in Haiti since January of this year, and more than 12,000 since the start of 2022.