Over 700,000 internally displaced in Haiti as humanitarian crisis deepens

More than 700,000 people are now internally displaced from their homes in Haiti, with over half of them being children, according to a new report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The United Nations agency said on Wednesday that the figure represented a 22 percent rise compared to June. More than 110,000 people have fled their homes in the last seven months due to gang violence, particularly in Gressier, west of the capital, Port-au-Prince, it added.

Haiti has faced years of unrest and instability as powerful armed groups – often with ties to the country’s political and business leaders – have vied for influence and control.

The situation worsened dramatically at the end of February, when gangs launched attacks on prisons and other state institutions across Port-au-Prince.

The surge of violence this year prompted the resignation of Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry, the creation of the country’s Transitional Presidential Council, and the deployment of a United Nations-backed, Kenya-led multinational force called the Multinational Security Support Mission.Last week, the UN human rights office said more than 3,600 people had been killed this year in “senseless” gang violence in the country. And on Monday, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) said in a report that almost 48 percent of people in Haiti are experiencing acute food shortages.