Aid group shutters hospital in Haiti amid spike in violence
Published:Wednesday | March 8, 2023 | 9:31 PM
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Doctors Without Borders announced Wednesday that it was forced to temporarily close its hospital in Cite Soleil given a sharp rise in gang violence that has left dozens dead in recent weeks.
The slum — one of the largest in the capital of Port-au-Prince — has been the site of repeated clashes between gangs.
“We are looking at a war scene just meters from our hospital,” said Vincent Harris, the aid group's adviser.
Officials noted that large numbers of stray bullets have hit the hospital compound, and that it's nearly impossible for the sick and injured to reach the institution for care.
The organisation added that in recent days, staff members at another nearby hospital have admitted up to 10 times the usual number of people with gunshot wounds.
Human rights activists have said that from February 24 to March 4, more than 60 people have been killed in one area of the capital alone, with dozens of others kidnapped.
Gangs continue to fight over more territory and are wielding more power since the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.
Prime Minister Ariel Henry has repeatedly asked the international community for the deployment of foreign troops, a request that has gone unanswered since October.
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