A new group of Kenyan officers has been deployed to Haiti as part of the international force tasked with helping local forces fight armed gangs in the besieged Caribbean country.
The 200 officers are set to join the group that arrived in late June. Overall, the country has pledged to send about 1,000 troops to lead a 2,500-strong force that includes officers from countries such as Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Jamaica, Bangladesh, Benin and Chad. Most of the funding is coming from the U.S., with Canada and France also contributing with funding and training.
Kenya's National Police Service said forces are "working closely with their host, the Haitian National Police, and have so far undertaken strategic mapping of the likely areas of operational concerns and conducted several joint patrols within Port-au-Prince".
So far there have been conflicting reports regarding the progress achieved since their arrival. Gangs continue wreaking havoc in the capital, "although not at the same level as the coordinated attacks that began on February 29," the Miami Herald reported. The outlet mentioned that kidnappings for ransom appear to be back.
And while the country's main hospital has been retaken from gang control, a recent report by The Washington Post shows that residents are expecting swifter action.
The outlet details that gangs so far appear "unperturbed" by the forces' arrival, still "setting homes ablaze, attacking police stations and killing with impunity." Police officers said they haven't been given a plan to restore order at a general level, with Kenyan officers so far joining them in patrols.
Authorities, in contrast, say the plan is proceeding as planned. New head of Haitian National Police, Normil Rameau, said there is not a set day or time for operations, and that "the population may wake up one day to find that operations have taken place and bandits have been stopped or neutralized." "For strategic reasons, we cannot reveal how this will happen."
A Kenyan officer who spoke on the condition of anonymity told the outlet that they are ready to move forward, but that they are waiting for more equipment to arrive before beginning operations. He didn't specify a date for when that would happen.
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