Haiti Bids Farewell to Four Victims of Kenscoff Massacre

Hundreds of residents gathered at the Kenscoff Conservative Baptist Church to say goodbye to four members of the same family, victims of an armed-gang attack that killed at least 47 people in the area a week earlier.

The funeral brought together relatives, friends and neighbors in the community outside Port-au-Prince. Family members, visibly affected by the loss, condemned what they viewed as passivity and inaction by the authorities. They blamed armed gangs for the deaths and for the insecurity affecting residents.

The attack also involved mass kidnappings. Sixty people were taken hostage, and six children and seven women were released on Friday, according to UNICEF. Yannig Dussart, UNICEF’s deputy representative in Haiti, said the Kenscoff kidnapping “was not an isolated incident” and reflected the scale and frequency of attacks against children in the country.

UNICEF said armed violence continues to expose children to killings, kidnappings and other grave violations. It called on armed groups to stop attacks against children still being held and to protect them.

Haiti faces a broad crisis, with armed gangs controlling much of the capital. The security situation remains one of the main challenges for a country scheduled to hold general elections on Dec. 13, 2026. UN figures updated this week recorded at least 3,050 deaths and 1,401 injuries from violence during the first six months of the year.

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was not an isolated incident