Haiti’s brutal gang wars have spread from the capital to key farming heartlands, displacing tens of thousands of people and having a devastating impact on access to food staples, the United Nations has warned.
Violence has gradually escalated in the Bas-Artibonite region north of the capital, the source of staples such as rice, according to a new report released on Tuesday, which said about 22,000 had been displaced amid murders, looting, kidnappings and widespread sexual violence.
The UN high commissioner for human rights Volker Turk said long-awaited international security assistance – requested by Haiti’s unelected government a year ago and authorized by the UN last month – should be deployed “as soon as possible”.
Armed with semi-automatic rifles and pistols, gangs have burned houses, attacked irrigation systems, stolen crops and livestock and demanded “taxes” for farmers to access fields, it said.
Victims rarely come forward, the report said, due to fear of reprisals and mistrust of police.
The insecurity and dwindling funds have caused aid groups to halt operations and slash budgets while the UN’s food agency estimates nearly half the country is going hungry, including over 45% of people in Bas-Artibonite.
The original article contains 356 words, the summary contains 192 words. Saved 46%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
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Haiti’s brutal gang wars have spread from the capital to key farming heartlands, displacing tens of thousands of people and having a devastating impact on access to food staples, the United Nations has warned.
Violence has gradually escalated in the Bas-Artibonite region north of the capital, the source of staples such as rice, according to a new report released on Tuesday, which said about 22,000 had been displaced amid murders, looting, kidnappings and widespread sexual violence.
The UN high commissioner for human rights Volker Turk said long-awaited international security assistance – requested by Haiti’s unelected government a year ago and authorized by the UN last month – should be deployed “as soon as possible”.
Armed with semi-automatic rifles and pistols, gangs have burned houses, attacked irrigation systems, stolen crops and livestock and demanded “taxes” for farmers to access fields, it said.
Victims rarely come forward, the report said, due to fear of reprisals and mistrust of police.
The insecurity and dwindling funds have caused aid groups to halt operations and slash budgets while the UN’s food agency estimates nearly half the country is going hungry, including over 45% of people in Bas-Artibonite.
The original article contains 356 words, the summary contains 192 words. Saved 46%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!