When the first Chadian officers arrived in Port-au-Prince on April 1 without ceremony, without a press conference and without so much as a photograph released by Haitian authorities, it was considered, nevertheless, a significant moment. The troops from the Francophone central African country signaled the opening deployment of the militaristic Gang Suppression Force, the new United Nations-authorized multinational mission designed to do what its underfunded, undermanned predecessor could not: Break the stranglehold of armed gangs that increasingly control large swaths of the Haitian capital and have pushed more than 1.4 million people from their homes.
By late April, a total of 400 Chadian military officers were on the ground. Chad has pledged a battalion of 1,500 military officers to work for the GSF, as it’s known. Another main newcomer for the GSF is Jack Christofides, a South African and former UN peacekeeping official who has been appointed special representative of the UN Security Council-endorsed force.
He arrived in Haiti the same day as the Chadian advance team, and he told the Security Council a few weeks later that the mission’s operating plan has been finalized and that troop pledges have exceeded the force’s 5,500-person ceiling. Yet, the actual methods of combating the gangs, which control most of the capital, Port-au-Prince, have not been made public.
“We are not starting from zero, but we are starting differently,” Christofides told the Council on April 23, referring to establishing the GSF. “The GSF has been built as a disciplined, accountable and partnership-driven mission, designed to deliver targeted security results while upholding the highest standards of conduct and full respect for Haitian sovereignty.”
Meanwhile, the UN’s special representative to Haiti, Carlos Ruiz-Massieu, told reporters on the same day that all 5,500 military and police multinational personnel should be on the ground “between the fall and the end of the year” — more than a year after the GSF was authorized — but its operations are supposed to start on June 1.
Yet, as the first foreign contingents arrive in a staggered fashion, a lingering question is how the GSF will operate amid the American private security firms that are working with Haiti’s government and police. Some of the private contractors are reportedly carrying out deadly drone warfare in densely populated neighborhoods of the capital.
Indeed, the GSF cannot act fast enough as the security situation worsens each month in Port-au-Prince as the transitional government’s promise to hold elections is perpetually delayed and national leadership remains absent for everyday citizens.
The UN has reported an “alarming surge” in gender-based violence in the first three months of this year, with almost 21 documented cases of gender-based violence a day and more than 70 percent involving rape, a 43 percent jump from the previous quarter. Most of the violence entailed gang rapes committed primarily by armed groups on women and girls.
US-led plan for Haiti
The GSF, an initiative of the United States with Panama, was authorized by the Security Council in September 2025 to be a larger, more aggressive successor to the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission. At its peak, this original “suppression” force had fewer than 1,000 officers deployed against a mandated ceiling of 2,500 and was chronically underfunded.
The GSF’s mandate allows the new force to conduct intelligence-led anti-gang operations, secure infrastructure, support humanitarian access and work with the Haitian National Police and Haitian Armed Forces with the explicit authority to arrest gang members and recover their weapons. The funding picture for the GSF appears more robust than the MSS, though it remains incomplete.
According to a UN-supervised trust fund set up originally for the Kenyan mission and now financing the GSF, approximately $223 million in voluntary contributions by 13 countries has been pledged to date, of which $174 million is cash. Of that, $66 million has been disbursed so far, mostly for personnel costs and medical and casualty evacuations. Currently, Canada and Germany are the top donors, followed by Qatar, which announced a $30 million contribution to the trust fund to be disbursed equally over three years.
David Lametti, Canada’s ambassador to the UN and chair of the UN Economic and Social Council’s ad hoc advisory group on Haiti, told PassBlue that countries have been asked to contribute in several ways: Troops, police, equipment, operational support or money. Canada has provided more than $126 million to support the GSF and its predecessor, the MSS, to help cover training, equipment, protection work and efforts to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse.
Mongolia is providing the GSF’s force commander, Maj. Gen. Erdenebat Batsuuri, who most recently led the UN peacekeeping mission in Cyprus, as well as offering 100 personnel to the operation. Chad’s President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno has said two battalions of 750 police officers each will deploy for one year. Côte d’Ivoire is also expected to contribute, although final numbers have not been publicly released; Bangladesh has pledged 1,500 officers; Guatemala, which had contributed several hundred military police to the MSS, is continuing its participation with possibly 600 officers. Another newcomer is Sri Lanka.
“For operational security reasons, the GSF is not in a position to provide a detailed breakdown of troop levels or country specific figures at this stage,” Jonathan Boulet-Groulx, the chief of strategic communications for the GSF, said in an email on May 21. “Both military and police personnel are drawn from Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, and South Asia in support of the mission. Further details will be communicated through appropriate channels as the mission progresses.”
The Standing Group of Partners, the governing body of the GSF, is led by the US and Canada. The other members are El Salvador, Guatemala, Jamaica and Bahamas. Lametti said that Bahamas and Jamaica, as members of Caricom, the regional body, will participate in the GSF as it transitions from the MSS.
The Kenyan police officers of the MSS have begun withdrawing in phases from Haiti. “They did a good job under very difficult circumstances,” Lametti said.
Yet, a recent UN report found that members of the Kenyan mission allegedly committed sexual violence in Haiti, including the rape of a 12-year-old girl and two 16-year-olds. Although the Kenyan government claims the allegations were investigated internally and determined to be unsubstantiated, the UN report indicates an internal investigation was conducted in only one case, according to Human Rights Watch.
A complicated setup
Christofides will report to the Standing Group of Partners and to the UN Security Council; Major General Batsuuri reports to Christofides. The GSF is set up to work with several immediate partners in a collaboration that defies diagramming. It includes the Organization of American States regional body; the UN political mission in Haiti (BINUH), run by Ruiz-Massieu; and a new UN entity, the UN Support Office in Haiti, or UNSOH. Its role was approved in the Security Council mandate of the GSF.
The support office is meant to provide logistics, technical and administrative support to the GSF — rations, fuel, water, accommodation, medical services, transport, communications and infrastructure — but it is not involved directly in anti-gang operations. It will also offer similar support to BINUH, the Haitian National Police and the Haitian Armed Forces in joint operations with the GSF.
Daniela Kroslak, a UN peacekeeping expert, has been named the head of UNSOH, which operates under the authority of UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Although UNSOH’s funding will come from the UN peacekeeping budget, other costs will depend on voluntary and in-kind contributions, according to Vanina Galloni Weber, the public affairs officer for the Canadian mission to the UN. These include direct funding for personnel stipends, insurance, orientation training, certain equipment and Christofides’ salary.
As of May 7, UNSOH numbered 231 local and international staff.
BINUH is a distinct, longstanding mission that is mandated to help Haitian authorities primarily with holding elections, protecting human rights and carrying out community violence-reduction programs. It has no military component, though it is expected to liaise with the GSF.
“They’re all hardened veterans,” Lametti said of Christofides, Kroslak and Ruiz-Massieu, whom he met on a recent trip to Haiti. “They’ve all worked in very difficult places before. And that’s going to be critical moving forward, because there are going to be quick decisions that have to be made.”
On the GSF rules of engagement, Lametti added: “They are going to have lethal force. And the rules of engagement are being developed there. But they will be able to protect themselves. They will be able to protect Haitians. And that’s a huge difference than previous missions.”
It remains to be seen how the GSF will manage amid private armed militias — some of whom are hired to protect Haitian elites and authorities — and lawless armed gangs.
Kroslak’s office emphasized that “engagement with private security providers” is not part of UNSOH’s mandate. Instead, it phrased its role in technical jargon.
“Through robust oversight and compliance mechanisms, clear operational boundaries, real-time information sharing and advance planning processes, we will ensure that all support provided remains fully consistent with our mandate and applicable UN rules and regulations, as UN missions routinely do in complex operational environments where multiple actors operate in overlapping geographical areas,” Mohamed Osman, special assistant to Kroslak, said in an email.
Grappling with private militias
Before the GSF could fully organize itself, Vectus Global, a private military company led by Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater special ops firm, was already fighting Haiti’s gangs, using explosives strapped to quadcopter drones in heavily populated neighborhoods of the capital, working with limited transparency and no public accountability.
Prince has said he signed a contract with the Haitian transitional government. The contract has not been made public. Vectus has not responded to emails from PassBlue.
Human Rights Watch reported in March that Haitian security forces and private contractors working with them had carried out drone strikes that appeared unlawful in certain cases and may amount to extrajudicial killings. At least 1,243 people were killed in 141 drone operations from March 1, 2025, to Jan. 21, 2026, including 17 children. A UN human rights report found that more than 60 percent of casualties in Haiti from January 2025 to March 2026 occurred during anti-gang activities involving the government and Vectus Global.
The operations are attributed to a specialized task force established by Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé. The US chargé d’affaires in Haiti told a Senate committee that the State Department had licensed Vectus to export its services to Haiti — meaning Washington did not hire the company but formally approved the arrangement.
Boulet-Groulx of the GSF said: “The GSF does not comment on Haiti’s sovereign right to engage security actors in its efforts to address the gang threat. The GSF coordinates with the Haitian National Police and the Armed Forces of Haiti.”
Lametti acknowledged the complicating factor of Vectus. “I don’t think it makes it harder, but it does increase complexity,” he said.
“The private security forces are there in an agreement with the Haitian government. And they are working with the Haitian National Police,” he added. “So, that’s not part of the UN-sanctioned GSF, but they’re there working with the police. And ultimately, it’s the Prime Minister who is responsible for them.”
Lametti also said that while the GSF will have its own accountability line to the Standing Group of Partners, private contractors should answer through the Haitian state.
“There will definitely be a line of accountability that I can help oversee from the UN for the GSF,” he said. “There should be a line of accountability for the Haitian National Police and the private military forces through the Haitian government.”
As Canada’s envoy to the UN, Lametti said he can push for the GSF to meet UN human rights standards. “What I can have an eye on is what happens at the UN. And to the extent that a private military corporation is working alongside of that, I will express the opinion that we need to be operating on the same standards.”
Combating gang warfare is the bottom line for the GSF’s success, observers roundly say. “There is an understanding that we have to do everything we can to protect innocent civilian deaths,” Lametti said. “We’re fighting gangs. Gangs are embedded in communities. We understand the risks there. And the Haitian people, more than anything, understand the risks there.”
The article was updated to reflect that the UN trust fund has received $223 million in pledges and not $203 million.
Arshi Qureshi is a freelance journalist based in New York City, focusing on politics and social issues. She holds a master’s degree in political journalism from the Columbia University School of Journalism.
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Excellent article. Thank you.
For them to come back in my country, they put gangs and assassinated our president for putting them out of the country as soon as he was taking power! #justiceforpresidentjovenelmoise trust me our beloved president will not only do himself justice but he will do us justice too. You blood suckers need to leave other countries alone! Since when them so called peacekeepers bring peace to a place or a country since its existence. Only the EMPIRE OF HAYTI used to bring peace and freedom to countries when it wasn’t collapsed yet! They can do whatever they want, the Empire will be back again and nothing won’t be able to stand on its way to save the world once again!
There Will be no way for anyone or any organization to protect the people of Haiti against abusive gangs’ activities if the American Department of State doesn’t rid the country of Eric Prince of Vectus Global and whoever that Ambassador or Chargé D’Affaire personnel that had worked to the installation of the Vectus Global armed security in Haiti.
The best way to fix the problem of Haiti is to take a chance with another transitional government chosen not by foreign countries nor Haitian politicians, but by the people themselves according to regional leaders charism. Then, assuring that this final transitional government also is made of a President who can authorize the elections, allow that transitional government the use of some of the remaining 108 millons dollars to process the Presidential Election since at least 66 millions have already been spent, and finally give the rest of the money dedicated to the project of degangsterization to the newly elected government of Haiti to combat those gangs. The question now is: will election be possible with the presence of those gangs throughout the country?
Yes! Once the transitional president has finalized the electoral date, it will be up to every candidate to figure out whether they want their names on the candidate list or not.
For example, regardless of their ability to campaign or not, if the name of a well-known leader like Jean Ernest Muscadin appears beside the name of a gang leader, even those little gang people who follow people like Jimmy Cherizier (Babékiou) or any other gang leader for example would rather pass their votes to Mr. Jean Ernest Muscadin, with the confidence that those votes could remain “secrets.”
However, before this can be made possible, the UN organized forces in connection to the Haitian Police and the Haitian military must be able to perform freely without Vectus Global or this vicious transitional Prime Minister, Alix Didier Fils-Aimé who, knowing that no presidential election will be made legal without a presidential authorization has used that mercenary organization to keep the government just for himself alone without a president. Such behavior is disgraceful, and Mr. Fils-Aimé with everyone who contributed to it or at least involved in such sad decision through which numerous people have lost their lives should pay a price.
The real problem starts with the so called friends of Haiti sending arms and munitions from their country openly to destabilize all attempts to normalize the situation.
For example controlling and paralyzing the airport and migratory movements of all Haitians.
Open interferences in all financial activities. Haiti is hated for more than a century for having the audacity to free itself from slavery and racism.
A bad example (apparently) and an insult for showing their values of true independence.
The problem can be solved as long as the real terrorists are identified and the people can be mobilized.
FSM
05/23/2026
WHAT WE NEED IS THAT HAITIAN REUNITED AND MAKE BWA KAYMAN AGAIN WITH FOREIGN FORCE, USA WON’T HELP HAITI BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT LIKE US AND THEY DON’T LIKE US.
That is right. The New UN back. How many more with no result. Stop playing the Haitian people.
I believe the so call UN cant not do anything to stop the due to the fact Washington is behind the gangs in HATI they live to see this black nations suffering in any kinds of ways if they wanted to they could of ends this madness long time ago .they don’t respect HAITI sovereignty and they supportive of corrupt government inHAITI..
I weep for my beloved Haiti! After how many failures do we repeat the same actions and believing we’ll arrive at better solutions? The fact is that all the solutions implemented by the United Nations to resolve Haiti’s problems have been resounding failures since the 1990s. Unfortunately this new UN mission will be no different because force alone is not the answer. Poor Haiti, they hated you since January 01, 1804!
response to PassBlue’s article, “The New UN-Backed Anti-Gang Force Is Finally Arriving in Haiti as Violence Surges”:
We applaud the United Nations for its continued and consistent engagement on the critical situation in Haiti. It is encouraging to see the UN continue to be recognized and hailed as the world’s leading international organization in advancing peace, security, diplomacy, and collective global action during moments of profound crisis — irrespective of the institutional setbacks and operational constraints resulting from its unfortunate financial crisis.
The international community cannot afford to view insecurity as isolated within national borders. In our deeply interconnected world, insecurity in one region inevitably impacts another.
Globalized systems now bind together economies, migration, trade, communications, and human security. As such, localized crises — whether armed conflict, organized crime, cyber threats, or pandemics — can rapidly cascade across borders and regions. Instability anywhere poses direct risks to global peace, economic stability, and collective security everywhere.
The situation in Haiti therefore demands sustained international solidarity, responsible multilateral cooperation, and unwavering support for the Haitian people in their pursuit of peace, security, democratic governance, and national recovery. The UN’s continued commitment reflects the enduring importance of international institutions in addressing complex global challenges through diplomacy, partnership, and coordinated action.