PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – The brand new United States Ambassador to Haiti, Henry Wooster, says his precedence is to deal with the safety state of affairs within the French-speaking Caribbean Neighborhood (CARICOM) nation, the place legal gangs have been looking for to overthrow the federal government.
In a video message, Wooster, who beforehand served right here from 1998 to 2000, mentioned he’s honoured to return to Haiti and lead the US Embassy “at such an important time.
“I’ll work with the Haitian folks to strengthen the connection between our two international locations and handle the complicated challenges we face,” he mentioned, including, “In these unprecedented occasions, our precedence is to deal with the safety state of affairs.
“For a lot too lengthy, legal gangs have used violence to terrorise Haiti for his or her acquire on the expense of peculiar Haitians,” the US diplomat mentioned.
Earlier this month, the United Nations mentioned between October 2024 and June this yr, Haiti had been caught in a vicious and endless cycle with gang violence increasing westward into the Artibonite and Centre Departments.
The UN mentioned that since 2021 and the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, gang violence has dominated the capital, Port-au-Prince, which is now 85 per cent managed by gangs.
Over 1.3 million Haitians have been displaced due to this violence, representing essentially the most important displacement because of political upheaval in Haitian historical past, the UN mentioned, noting that meals insecurity amongst displaced Haitians is rampant, with Haiti being one among 5 international locations worldwide that’s experiencing famine-like circumstances.
As of March 2025, the violence has additionally expanded into beforehand untouched areas of the nation, particularly the Artibonite and Centre Departments, the place 92,000 and 147,000 folks have been displaced, respectively.
The US diplomat mentioned that along with Haitians and the worldwide group, “we are going to handle the safety disaster and strengthen world assist for the Haitian Nationwide Police and the Multinational Safety Help (MSS) Mission.
The United Nations Safety Council has prolonged the mandate of the Kenya-led MSS till October 2, 2025, regardless of the MSS’s political mandate being prolonged to January 31, 2026.
Kenya had initially agreed to steer this mission and deploy as much as 1,000 law enforcement officials to help the Haitian Nationwide Police in combating gang violence and restoring order.
“I need to hear your voices, your concepts, and your hopes for the longer term. The Embassy is right here to collaborate with Haitians and our companions to construct a safer and stronger Haiti. We imagine in Haiti’s potential,” Wooster mentioned within the video.
