A Kenyan force is set to depart for Haiti on June 25 to lead a UN-backed mission aimed at addressing gang violence, despite facing court challenges, according to government and police sources on Sunday.
Kenya has offered to send approximately 1,000 police officers to help stabilize Haiti, alongside personnel from several other countries. However, the deployment has encountered legal challenges in Kenya. President William Ruto has been a strong supporter of the mission and announced earlier this month that the deployment would commence within weeks.
“The departure is this week on Tuesday,” an interior ministry official said on condition of anonymity.
“Preparations are set for the team to depart for Haiti on Tuesday. We already have two advance teams that left — one last week and another one yesterday,” a senior police official said.
A UN Security Council resolution approved the mission to Haiti in October, but a Kenyan court delayed the deployment in January, stating that the Kenyan government had no authority to send police officers abroad without a prior agreement. The government secured the necessary agreement on March 1, but a small opposition party in Kenya has since filed a new lawsuit to block the deployment.
In addition to Kenya, other countries expressing willingness to join the mission include Benin, the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, and Chad. The United States is providing funding and logistical support but will not have troops on the ground in Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas.
Human Rights Watch has raised concerns about the mission and its funding, citing accusations against Kenyan police of using excessive force and carrying out unlawful killings. On Friday, a police watchdog announced an investigation into allegations that a 29-year-old man was shot by officers in Nairobi following youth-led demonstrations against proposed tax hikes.
Haiti has experienced long-standing gang violence, which worsened significantly at the end of February when armed groups launched coordinated attacks in the capital, Port-au-Prince, aiming to overthrow then-Prime Minister Ariel Henry. Henry announced in early March that he would step down and hand over executive power to a transitional council, which named Garry Conille as the interim prime minister on May 29.
The violence in Port-au-Prince has severely impacted food security and access to humanitarian aid, with much of the city under the control of gangs accused of crimes such as murder, rape, looting, and kidnappings.
