Christiana, a mother of six, fled repeated waves of armed violence, first from her home in Morne Blanc, where her husband was killed in 2024, then from Mirebalais in March 2025, seeking safety in Boucan Carré. Credit: UNICEF/Herold Joseph
By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Aug 7 2025 – The humanitarian situation in Haiti has deteriorated significantly in the past few weeks, with the United Nations (UN) underscoring a growing list of abuses committed by armed groups, including killings, kidnappings, and sexual violence. The gap between the vast scale of needs and the supply of available resources has widened, leaving millions of Haitians in dire need of humanitarian support.
Humanitarian experts have expressed concern that Haiti is at a “critical turning point”, with millions of Haitians being projected to face worsened living conditions if needs are not met soon. Current deliveries of humanitarian aid are being halted due to heightened insecurity along critical entry points and numerous budget cuts for USAID programs by the Trump administration.
“The rise of armed groups in Haiti and their increasing control of strategic locations, particularly major roads and ports of entry to the capital, is a major obstacle to the safe and efficient delivery of humanitarian aid,” said Modibo Traore, Haiti’s country director for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). “The deterioration of the security situation represents a major challenge for mobilising and maintaining financial commitments. Donors have expressed concerns about operational risks, particularly regarding securing supply chains, preventing exploitation and ensuring accountability.”
On August 1, the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) released a report detailing the escalation of hostilities recorded from the beginning of April to the end of June. According to BINUH, humanitarian operations and civilian mobility has been severely restricted in the Artibonite and Centre departments as a result of intensified violence, with critical entrance and exit points in the Mirebalais and Saut d’Eau communes being under gang control.
BINUH also underscored rampant levels of human rights abuses, committed by both armed gangs and local self-defense groups. From early April until the end of June, it is estimated that roughly 1,520 people were killed as a direct result of armed violence and over 609 people were injured. Approximately 24 percent of these casualties were a result of gang violence, 12 percent were from clashes with local self-defense groups, and 64 percent were from clashes with security forces.
These numbers mark a slight decrease from the figures recorded in the first quarter of 2025, which can be attributed to security forces being able to contain gang’s rates of expansion in Port-Au-Prince. Despite this, BINUH states that the security situation on the ground remains “exceptionally volatile”, with armed groups beginning to establish “sketches of governance” in the Artibonite and Centre departments.
The second quarter of 2025 marked a notable increase in kidnappings, with gangs facilitating over 175 kidnappings-for-ransom, 62 percent of which occurred in the Artibonite department. Additionally, BINUH states that there have been numerous reports of people being killed and their bodies being burned.
Gang rape remains particularly pervasive, with 628 cases being recorded from April until June. Rape accounts for roughly 85 percent of all sexual violence cases, and sexual slavery is especially prominent. Many of these victims are minors hailing from highly vulnerable families, while a significant portion of these victims were assaulted in their homes. Additionally, BINUH states that many victims were killed after being raped, while others remained in captivity until June.
Figures from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) state that in June alone, approximately 45,000 people were displaced in the Centre and Artibonite departments, bringing the total number of displacements in these regions to over 1.3 million people nationwide. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) states that as of July 19, there have been at least 15,000 additional displacements across the Artibonite region. Many of these individuals are currently residing with host families and struggling to access basic services.
According to Traore, the cessation of funding for programs facilitated through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has significantly complicated relief efforts during what could be a very pivotal period for Haiti’s stabilization.
“The interruption of US programmes has acted as a catalyst for the crisis. USAID’s technical partners, many of whom managed community health programmes in vulnerable neighbourhoods, have ceased operations, depriving hundreds of thousands of people of vital services,” he said. “In the case of Haiti, the effects were felt through the sudden halt of approximately 80 per cent of US-funded programmes. NGO partner staff were laid off, payments were suspended and supply chains were disrupted.”
Approximately USD 908 million is required in order to sustain humanitarian operations and provide direct relief to struggling communities in Haiti. Currently, only 8 percent of that goal has been reached. Traore states that the overwhelming lack of monetary support has forced humanitarian organizations to make “complex and often painful” trade-offs, prioritizing certain areas of concern over others.
For example, psychosocial support services for female victims of gender-based violence have been reduced, putting them at a heightened risk of exploitation and abuse. According to Traore, this has led to a “multidimensional regression” of rights for women and girls in Haiti which will have ripple effects that last for many years.
Additionally, nutritional services, healthcare programs, cash transfers, and resilience-building activities have all faced dramatic reductions over the past few months. This is particularly worrying as these programs acted as a lifeline for many Haitians. In order to supplement these losses, children have resorted to supporting their families by dropping out of school and engaging in child labor.
UNICEF projects that food insecurity will rise significantly, with children being hit the hardest. It is estimated that 129,000 children will need treatment for malnutrition in the next year. Furthermore, the number of maternal deaths is also projected to rise.
“The current crisis demonstrates the country’s growing isolation. While previous crises had prompted rapid international solidarity, the humanitarian response to the situation in 2025 has been slow and partial,” said Traore. “This partial coverage only allows a fraction of the 3.6 million people targeted to be reached.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
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