At least 12 people were killed when a criminal gang attacked the town of Source-Matelas north of the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince. The perpetrators broke into the district of the Cabaret community, killed several residents and set houses on fire, as the newspaper “Le Nouvelliste” reported yesterday, citing the city administration.
“The bandits displayed an unparalleled level of cruelty. Some of the bodies were charred,” said Mayor Joseph Jeanson Guillaume. The police had previously driven the gang members out of the area.
Haiti threatens to sink more and more into chaos. Rival gangs have been battling for control of the greater Port-au-Prince area for over a year. Tens of thousands of people have already had to flee their homes because of the escalating violence. The fighting is also exacerbating the already precarious supply situation in the bitterly poor Caribbean country. The interim government asked the United Nations for help through an armed international force.
