Haiti – UN Slams Lack of Political Progress, Urges Urgent Security Reforms

2026-01-31 - 14:38

The United Nations Security Council on Thursday sharply criticized Haitian authorities for failing to make meaningful progress toward a political transition and called for urgent security sector reforms to stem escalating violence by gangs and criminal groups. In one of its strongest condemnations to date, the Council denounced the surge in violence in Latin America’s poorest country, citing widespread human rights violations and abuses. These include sexual violence against women, men, and children, as well as human trafficking, migrant smuggling, killings, and the abduction of children by armed gangs. The unanimously adopted resolution, co-sponsored by the United States and Panama, extends the mandate of the UN’s political mission in Haiti until January 31, 2027. Armed gangs have steadily expanded their influence since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021. They now control an estimated 90 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and have pushed their operations into rural areas. Haiti has remained without an elected president since Moïse’s killing. A transitional council has served as one of the country’s highest governing authorities since April 2024. The body was established with the support of Caribbean leaders after gangs shut down Haiti’s main international airport and attacked key state infrastructure in a wave of unprecedented violence that ultimately forced then Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign. The council was tasked with selecting a prime minister in an effort to restore stability, but since its formation, Haiti has cycled through three prime ministers. The council is expected to dissolve by February 7, although it remains unclear whether that timeline will be met. Last week, the United States warned the transitional council against making further changes to the government, as international pressure intensifies for the unelected body to move decisively toward elections for the first time in nearly a decade.