Criminal organizations carried out additional violent assaults in Haiti’s crucial agricultural zone on Tuesday, following a devastating weekend attack that claimed the lives of roughly 70 civilians, according to human rights organizations and area residents.
Haitian national police confirmed they were conducting operations across multiple locations in the Artibonite region on Tuesday.
Community members in Jean-Denis discovered 70 bodies on Sunday following an assault by the Gran Grif criminal organization, the National Network for the Defense of Human Rights (RNDDH) reported, aligning with estimates from the Defense Plus advocacy group while significantly exceeding government figures that placed fatalities at approximately 16.
The RNDDH documented an additional 30 wounded individuals, with casualties spanning all ages including babies, expectant mothers, adolescents and an elderly 80-year-old resident.
While the armed attackers retreated from Jean-Denis on Monday, RNDDH reported they had regrouped in the nearby community of Pont Benoit by Tuesday and were planning to launch another assault on Marchand Dessalines, located roughly 12 miles to the north.
Social media footage captured armed individuals, reportedly from the Kokorat San Ras organization – a close partner of the influential Gran Grif group – handing out money to people in Marchand Dessalines. Both the United States and Dominican Republic have classified Gran Grif as a terrorist entity.
Local residents informed Reuters that community defense groups lacked sufficient weapons to repel the criminal organizations, which would remain hidden during daylight hours when police were visible but would emerge after dark to conduct shootings and arson attacks.
The RNDDH investigation, which included interviews with regional officials, law enforcement and community members, revealed that Gran Grif’s assault on Jean-Denis came after weeks of intimidation, though residents remained because they trusted their local defense brigade would provide protection.
However, the community defense force retreated when they realized they were outgunned and unable to withstand the attack, according to RNDDH findings.
Police intervention proved insufficient, the organization noted, with armored units that reached the location remaining only briefly before withdrawing and not returning until Monday.
Regional officials informed the rights organization that most of their armored vehicles were inoperable, some due to battery problems requiring assistance from mechanics located in Port-au-Prince, while units from the U.N.-supported security force needed approval from the capital before deployment.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime met with United Nations representatives to discuss expanding a partially deployed international security mission that has struggled with shortages of equipment, personnel and funding.
