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The U.S. envoy to the United Nations announced tens of millions of dollars in aid for Haiti during a visit a month after the first Kenyan police contingent arrived in Haiti as part of an international security mission aimed at tackling gang violence.
Ambassador to Haiti Linda Thomas-Greenfield announced $60 million in humanitarian assistance that will support the country’s people and alleviate suffering caused by gang violence, according to a statement. It will address serious gaps in nutrition, food security and housing, and improve water and sanitation, among other things.
The United States will also provide “significant” amounts of mine-resistant and ambush-resistant vehicles to international security missions through the Department of Defense.
The State Department also plans to purchase more armored vehicles to assist mission personnel, the statement said.
The United Nations says gang warfare has displaced more than 578,000 Haitians and nearly 5 million people – nearly half of the country’s 11.7 million people – face severe hunger, with 1.6 million at risk of starvation.
Armed gangs that now control much of the capital, Port-au-Prince, have formed a broad alliance to carry out widespread killings, kidnappings for ransom and sexual violence. The United Nations says rape cases increased by 49% between January and August 2023 compared with the same period in 2022.
About 200 Kenyan police officers arrived in Haiti late last month as part of a long-delayed multinational security support mission to assist the national police in combating armed gangs. The full force is expected to number more than 2,500, but it is unclear when more members will arrive and funding still lags far behind needs.
The U.N. Security Council authorized the force in October 2023, a year after Haiti’s previous government requested help. The U.S. contributed about $300 million for the mission, which is not a U.N. peacekeeping operation.
Thomas-Greenfield met with the transitional council and Prime Minister Gary Cornell during her visit on Monday. She also toured the life support area of the international security mission, according to a pool reporter who traveled with the ambassador.
The United Nations has called for $674 million to help Haiti by 2024, but has received less than a quarter of that goal.
At least 40 Haitian migrants died at sea last Wednesday after their boat caught fire, the International Organization for Migration in Haiti said.
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