A brutal escalation of gang violence in Haiti’s central region has left three police officers and two civilians dead, officials confirmed Wednesday. The latest attack underscores the deteriorating security crisis gripping the Caribbean nation, where law enforcement remains vastly outgunned and under-resourced.
The slain officers belonged to the UDMO unit—a specialized division of the Haitian National Police typically deployed during protests and civil unrest. According to a police union and social media footage, the officers were ambushed in the Artibonite department, where violence has surged in recent months.
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Chilling video circulated online shows heavily armed gunmen dragging the bodies of at least two officers near a burning armored vehicle as gunfire rings out in the background.
The local police union SPNH-17 reported that two civilians who had attempted to aid the officers were also killed in the assault. Calling them “brave citizens,” the union used the incident to issue a scathing rebuke of the Haitian government’s response to the crisis, warning that officers are on the brink of revolt.
“The government does not give the police any importance,” the union said in a statement. “If they took this seriously, they would have provided the necessary resources and support to both police and military forces to end this insecurity. Too many officers have fallen.”
Haiti’s transitional presidential council has vowed to investigate the killings and honor the fallen officers, stating that all necessary resources are being mobilized in response.
The attack is part of a broader surge in violence across Haiti’s Artibonite and Central departments. According to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, between October 2024 and June 2025, over 1,000 people were killed, 213 injured, and 620 kidnapped in these regions alone.
Despite the deployment of a Kenyan-led, UN-backed multinational support mission aimed at bolstering Haiti’s National Police, gangs—many armed with military-grade weaponry—continue to overrun large swathes of territory. Two Kenyan officers have also been killed in Artibonite this year, highlighting the extreme risk even international peacekeepers face.
As Haiti teeters on the edge of collapse, calls are intensifying for more robust international intervention and a comprehensive strategy to dismantle the country’s powerful and heavily armed criminal networks.
