Haiti Gang Murders Over 110 Elderly Residents Accused of Witchcraft

Over 110 elderly residents have been brutally murdered by gang members in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. The violence erupted after a local gang leader’s son fell ill and died, with a voodoo priest blaming elderly locals practicing “witchcraft” for the boy’s illness.

The United Nations reports that gang violence in Haiti has claimed a staggering 5,000 lives this year. 184 people were killed over the weekend in violence orchestrated by a powerful gang leader.

Reports indicate that gang members targeted residents over 60, forcibly removing them from their homes and brutally killing them with knives and machetes. Witnesses described seeing mutilated bodies burned in the streets.

Some younger individuals who tried to protect the elderly were also killed. Local media reported that elderly people believed to practice voodoo were singled out due to the gang leader’s belief that they caused his son’s illness.

Haiti has been plagued by gang violence since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021. Recent attempts by gangs to expand their territory have led to increased violence against ordinary residents.

With gangs controlling an estimated 85% of Port-au-Prince and large parts of the countryside, hundreds of thousands of Haitians have been displaced.

Gang members often use sexual violence to terrorize the population. Meanwhile, the Transitional Presidential Council (TPC), tasked with organizing elections and restoring democratic order, is in disarray. The TPC recently replaced the interim prime minister but has made little progress towards elections. GI-TOC’s Romain Le Cour Grandmaison described the council as “reigning over a mountain of ashes.”