Hundreds flee homes as gang clashes paralyze Haiti’s Cul-de-Sac Plain

PORT-AU-PRINCE — Hundreds of residents fled their homes Monday in Haiti’s Cul-de-Sac Plain, north of Port-au-Prince, as violent clashes between rival armed groups paralyzed daily life across the area and forced the temporary closure of a major hospital, schools and businesses.

The fighting, which began over the weekend and continued through May 11, involved gangs affiliated with the powerful and the United States-designated terrorist organization “Viv Ansanm” coalition. Residents said the violence stemmed from battles for territorial control and extortion routes targeting cargo trucks moving through the area.

Families carrying bags, backpacks and small children fled along the roads leading to Carrefour Trois Mains and Toussaint Louverture International Airport areas in search of shelter, while gunfire echoed through nearby neighborhoods.

The latest violence underscores Haiti’s worsening security crisis, as armed groups continue expanding their control despite the deployment of a Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission and repeated anti-gang operations by Haitian police. The United Nations estimates gangs now control most of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, between 80% and 90%, where kidnappings, killings, arson attacks and mass displacement have become routine. Thousands of residents have been forced to abandon their homes in recent years as gangs battle for territory and control of strategic roads linking the capital to the rest of the country. 

Schools, public transportation, markets and businesses across the Cul-de-Sac Plain were largely shut down since Monday as residents sheltered indoors or fled.

The violence also crippled healthcare services in nearby Cité Soleil. Doctors Without Borders (MSF in French) announced it had evacuated patients from its hospital and temporarily suspended operations because of the fighting.

According to MSF, the facility sheltered more than 800 people seeking refuge and treated more than 40 gunshot victims, including one of the organization’s security guards.

“Our objective is to protect patients and our staff members. It is impossible for us to provide care amid gunfire,” said Davina Hayles, MSF project director in Haiti. “A hospital where staff are not safe cannot function. This suspension is temporary, due to the extremely high level of insecurity.” 

MSF said there are currently no functioning hospitals in northern Cité Soleil.

No official casualty toll had been released as of Monday evening. However, residents told The Haitian Times that several people were killed or wounded, while stray bullets struck homes and some houses were set ablaze during the clashes.

Witnesses said the violence involved the Duvivier and Pyè 6 gangs against armed groups based in Croix-des-Missions and Canaan, including factions tied to the Chen Mechan and Taliban gangs. Although the groups belong to the same “Viv Ansanm” coalition, the clashes appear to reflect growing tensions and rivalries over influence and revenue streams.

The renewed fighting comes as Haiti’s transitional government struggles to contain spiraling insecurity ahead of proposed elections expected later this year. Gang violence has spread beyond the capital into the Artibonite and Centre departments, disrupting transportation, agriculture and commerce.

In Saint-Marc, in the Artibonite region, at least eight people were killed in recent gang attacks in the Carrefour Robert community, less than 50 miles north of Port-au-Prince, according to local reports.

The violence has continued despite increased police operations and Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé’s promises to restore the security conditions necessary for elections by the end of the year.

A recent report from the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) said at least 1,642 people were killed and 745 injured across Haiti during the first quarter of 2026 alone.

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