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Security Crisis in Haiti: The Critical Situation Restricts Humanitarian Aid

Published on Friday 22 November 2024

[Paris, November 22, 2024] Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, has been facing an alarming deterioration in its security situation for several weeks due to attacks and violences. Despite this critical situation, the NGO SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is implementing emergency activities but calls for guarantees to ensure the safe continuation of humanitarian aid deployment.  

For several weeks, Haiti’s security situation has been marked by a series of attacks and atrocities severely impacting vulnerable populations and hindering humanitarian access. Since October 17, a spiral of violence in Port-au-Prince—characterized by the closure of the international airport and deadly attacks—has forced more than 41,000 people to flee¹. This escalation of violence has resulted in dozens of deaths and further mass displacements, exacerbating an already critical crisis.  

The metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince is paralyzed, and our operations were completely stopped for several days due to gunfire and attacks,” warns Charline Petitjean, Country Director of SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL in Haiti. “Since the airport closure, we’ve been struggling to retrieve imported materials that are essential for providing humanitarian aid commensurate with the needs.” 

In this explosive context, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL was forced to temporarily suspend its activities. The persistent insecurity made it impossible to implement an emergency water and sanitation response for several days. The teams also had to interrupt a school canteen meal distribution program, as schools have become shelters for displaced people fleeing the violence.  

SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL’s teams have not been spared by this harrowing environment either. “Some of our team members have been directly affected by the violence and were forced to relocate with their families to ensure their safety,” shares Charline Petitjean. 

And yet, despite the ongoing insecurity, they have managed to initiate an emergency response. Teams are currently conducting needs assessments on sites hosting displaced people, with the aim of supplying these areas with safe drinking water and distributing hygiene kits containing basic hygiene products. 

The situation is dire. Thousands of people who are already displaced and living in precarious conditions will be even more vulnerable if nothing changes. We must secure guarantees for safe access to these populations. All we want is to provide them with life-saving assistance in an extremely volatile context, amid a crisis that has been underfunded by the international community for years,” concludes Charline Petitjean. 

¹Haïti — Suivi des Urgences 52.2 — Mise à jour sur les Déplacements suite aux violences armées dans la Zone Métropolitaine de Port-au-Prince (11 – 20 novembre 2024) | Displacement Tracking Matrix  

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