A powerful gang coalition attacked a once peaceful farming community located in the hills above Haiti’s capital, killing multiple people, an official informed The Associated Press on Monday.
Kenscoff Mayor Jean Massillon stated that armed men raided the community late Sunday, setting fire to homes and killing residents.
“It is still impossible to establish a definitive death toll due to access difficulties and communication problems,” he said.
Wails echoed through Kenscoff as survivors discovered the bodies of friends and family scattered on the streets early Monday.
“They killed my son!” one woman repeatedly shouted while nearby people attempted to comfort her.
One man lay by the roadside, his head resting on his right arm as he cried on the ground. Nearby, individuals were collecting the deceased, some wrapped in sheets stained with blood.
Robert Jean recounted hearing gunfire before dawn and attempting to wake residents to escape potential harm. He mentioned frantically searching for his brother, who was killed: “I was calling to see if everyone was safe. I could not find my brother.”
Another Kenscoff resident held the government responsible for the killings.
“If only we had a good police force that would have placed an armored truck here, what happened here would have been prevented,” said Verti Enold-Saint as he covered his brother-in-law's body with a sheet.
Farmer Mathurin Pierre, 41, informed AP that he lost 14 loved ones and that an unknown number remain missing.
Residents attempted to overturn a car to obstruct a street while protesting for police intervention following the deadly gang attacks in Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
Massillon attributed the attack to members of Viv Ansanm, which the U.S. government designated as a foreign terrorist organization last year.
“They sowed chaos,” Massillon stated.
He added that gang members targeted a church and homes, including those owned by Dr. Jean “Bill” Pape, a renowned doctor who runs a non-governmental organization in Haiti assisting patients with HIV and tuberculosis.
Haiti’s Office of Citizen Protection released a statement condemning the massacre, reporting that dozens of people, including "numerous" young Haitians, were killed.
Vladimir Paraison, director of Haiti’s National Police, visited the area and defended police officers as journalists sought answers.
“The police never lowered their arms,” he said. “Look at how many police officers are here; the response is in front of you.”
Jean Fritz Patterson Dorval, head of Port-au-Prince’s prosecutor’s office, also faced pressure. He confirmed that there were eight armored vehicles in Kenscoff, noting that "there are technical responses that only the mayor and the police can answer."
No further details regarding the attack were available. A spokesperson for the U.N.-backed gang suppression force did not respond to requests for comment.
Blood marked the ground left by a victim of a gang attack in Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
Haiti’s government issued a statement condemning what it termed a heinous criminal attack. The statement read: “Reinforcements are being deployed.” It added that "Kenscoff will not be abandoned."
The government announced that security forces had been ordered to pursue those responsible, asserting, “The population must remain confident,” and confirming it would not yield.
Gangs reportedly control an estimated 70% of Port-au-Prince, the capital, with Viv Ansanm repeatedly targeting nearby Kenscoff.
Gang violence has displaced a record 1.5 million people across Haiti. According to U.N. statistics, more than 3,100 people were reported killed and another 1,189 injured between January and June.
People mourned over the bodies of relatives killed in a gang attack in Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
The attack occurred less than a week after the U.S. government deported over 160 people to the troubled Caribbean country for the first time since the Trump administration won a legal battle to end Temporary Protected Status for some 350,000 Haitians.
Haiti’s government stated that some of the deportees included TPS holders. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security informed AP via statement on Monday that those deported Friday included several gang members with criminal records spanning from assault to drug trafficking.
Haiti is scheduled to hold general elections for the first time in over a decade on Dec. 13 and has been registering voters in Port-au-Prince and elsewhere. Experts have warned that conditions are currently too dangerous to conduct elections.