More than 70 people have been killed and 30 injured during an attack near Petite-Riviere in Haiti’s breadbasket, the Artibonite region, a human rights group said, significantly higher than official estimates, which put the death toll at approximately 16.
Residents and officials told local media that the attack began in the early hours of Sunday in rural communities around Jean-Denis and continued into the early hours of Monday, with gang members storming the area and setting homes on fire.
A spokesperson for the UN secretary-general told a news briefing that the organization's office in Haiti, BINUH, was closely monitoring the events and that estimates ranged from 10 to 80 people killed. He called for a thorough investigation.
Additionally, the United Nations estimated that more than 2,000 people had left their homes in the days before, following raids by armed gangs nearby.
While the Defenseurs Plus rights group said it estimated that 6,000 people had been displaced by the violence.
“The lack of a security response and the abandonment of Artibonite to armed groups demonstrate a complete abdication of responsibility by the authorities,” Defenseurs Plus said in a joint statement with the Collective to Save the Artibonite.
