Haiti Gang Raid Kills 47, Abducts 50 in Largest Mass Kidnapping in Years

At least 47 people were killed and more than 50 others abducted when armed men stormed the hillside community of Kenscoff, near Port-au-Prince, on Sunday, according to the United Nations. The attack is believed to be the largest mass kidnapping in Haiti in recent years, and a gang leader has threatened to kill the hostages if authorities harm any gang members during a rescue operation.

The assault shattered hopes that security in the Caribbean nation was improving. Romain Le Cour, head of the Haiti Observatory at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, called the incident a major political and security test for the government, police, and the international mission. He warned that the threat to execute hostages is a trap: if forces do not act, they fail to protect the captives; if they act and hostages die, the gangs will blame the state.

In a video posted on social media, a gang leader identified only as "Izo 2" threatened Vladimir Paraison, director of Haiti's National Police, warning against using drones to repel gangs in the area. "Paraison, if any of our soldiers are hurt, I will kill all of them," he said, referring to the hostages. Le Cour said Izo 2, also known as "Didi," leads the armed group in Kenscoff on behalf of and in coordination with Izo (Johnson André), one of Haiti's most powerful gang leaders, running a "franchise cell" for other gangs.

The attack may be aimed at forcing Haiti's police and the UN-backed gang suppression force to spread their limited resources even thinner, Le Cour said. It could also be a show of force ahead of the country's first general elections in over a decade, scheduled for December 13. "This is a message to the government and the police that their claims of protection do not match reality," he said.

Kenscoff had seen sporadic attacks since January 2025, but Sunday's was the largest yet. At least five of the dead were children, according to the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH). Kenscoff Mayor Jean Massillon said two government employees were among the killed, including his cousin who served as his security detail. He also reported that members of Viv Ansanm, a gang coalition designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the US, set fire to 25 homes.

Survivors accused the government of failing to provide adequate protection before the attack, a charge the National Police rejected. Le Cour noted that if police and armored vehicles were indeed stationed in Kenscoff prior to the assault, the assertion is concerning: "You let the gangs come in even if you had everything in place?"

Armed groups control an estimated 70% of Port-au-Prince and large areas of Haiti's central region. Gang violence has displaced a record 1.5 million people nationwide, with more than 3,100 killed and 1,189 injured between January and June, according to UN statistics.