PORT-AU-PRINCE: A group of 13 suspected gang members was beaten and burned to death on Monday by a mob in broad daylight on the streets of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince.
Horrifying footage of the occurrence showed the bloodied men being forced to lie on the asphalt by rifle-wielding policemen before bystanders piled tyres over them, doused them with petrol and set them ablaze.
Police say they confiscated weapons from the suspects just before the incident. They did not explain how the public got hold of the suspects.
Haiti has descended into increasing chaos since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021.
Increasing gang violence
According to a United Nations report published on Monday, the insecurity level in the capital is similar to countries at war.
Gang violence led to the killing of nearly 70 people, including 18 women and two children, between 14 and 19 April alone, the UN said.
Many schools and hospitals have been forced to shut down amid the violence that has also affected access to various goods and services.
Since Moïse’s assassination, the Caribbean nation has been led by Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who has failed to contain the gangs that now control an estimated 60% of the capital.
There have been repeated calls by Henry and UN officials for the deployment of an international force to help the Haitian police in their fight against the criminal gangs, but so far no country has offered to lead such a force.
