By Mohammed Jinadu
Scores of people including infants have been killed in a gang attack in central Haiti.
Members of the Gran Grif gang used automatic rifles to kill at least 70 people including 10 women and some infants, according to the UN.
The attack occurred in the town of Pont Sondé in Artibonite department, a crucial agricultural center about 50 miles north of Port-au-Prince, where gang violence has continued to spread, according to the UN.
At least 16 people were seriously injured in the attack, including two gang members hit during an exchange of fire with Haitian police, the UN said. The gang members also set fire to at least 45 houses and 34 vehicles, forcing some residents to flee.
The International Organization for Migration said more than 6,000 people had been displaced by the violence.
The Haitian Ministry of Health said it had mobilized to respond to the incident but faced challenges accessing the site due to the tense security situation. “Despite an extremely difficult security context, the victims of this attack are being cared for by local institutions,” the ministry said.
Haiti’s Prime Minister Garry Conille offered his condolences to those affected by the attack and said law enforcement would be “stepping up its response.”
