Gangs in Haiti murder 22 people sheltering in a church

“A heinous attack” and a “night of terror” – this is how the Haitian authorities described the killing of at least 47 people on the night of Sunday 23 August in the commune of Kenscoff.

The perpetrators are, almost certainly, the Viv Ansanm coalition of criminal gangs, which is terrorising the areas surrounding the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince.

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Of those killed, 22 were in a church seeking refuge, as confirmed by the UN Secretary-General himself, Antonio Guterres: “executed in a church compound where they had found shelter”, he confirmed. Several houses were also set alight.

I condemn the latest gang attack on Kenscoff, a commune on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince, in Haiti, that reportedly killed at least 47 people, including 22 who were reportedly executed in a church compound where they had found shelter. 



The relentless gang attacks on…

— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) August 25, 2026

The police in the capital have been unable to identify any of the attackers. Hours later, another group of 60 people was abducted.

Haiti is in the grip of violence. More than 3,000 people have been killed in the first six months of 2026 alone, with a further 1,400 injured, according to the UN. 1.4 million people have been forced to flee their homes, and it is estimated that 6 out of the 14 million inhabitants are in need of humanitarian aid.

No elections have been held since 2016, and plans are now in place to hold them later this year. A key moment in the country’s decline was the assassination in 2021 of Haiti’s then President, Jovenel Moïse.

Organisations such as Médecins Sans Frontières, working in hospitals and health centres – most of which are inoperative – have at times had to suspend their work due to the high risk of kidnappings and violence against these facilities.

According to the newspaper El País, there are around a thousand foreign troops in the country, coordinated by the UN to combat criminal gangs, but this figure is reportedly insufficient.

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