A new United Nations force has arrived in Haiti with the daunting mission of “neutralizing” the country’s violent criminal gangs – a challenge that has already defeated several international interventions before it. Despite the optimism surrounding the new Gang Suppression Force (GSF), analysts and rights advocates warn that unless it addresses deep structural problems that previous missions ignored, it risks becoming just another well-intentioned failure in a country trapped in a spiral of violence and despair.

For more than two years, Haiti has been gripped by chaos. Armed gangs now control as much as 90 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and are expanding their reach into rural areas. Their rule is enforced through kidnappings, murders, rapes, and extortion, leaving the national police and military virtually powerless. According to the UN, more than 5,600 people were killed in 2024, and an additional 3,100 have been murdered in just the first half of 2025. Over 1.3 million people have been displaced from their homes, creating a humanitarian catastrophe.

The UN’s previous mission, the Kenyan-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), was dispatched in late 2023 amid growing international concern. But rather than curbing gang violence, the MSS watched as the armed groups grew bolder and more organized, overrunning police stations and entire neighborhoods. The mission was plagued by delays, underfunding, and unclear leadership. Its troop levels never reached even half of the intended 2,500 personnel.

Now, the new GSF promises to correct those mistakes. The force’s official mandate is to “neutralize gangs, secure infrastructure, and support humanitarian access.” It aims to deploy up to 5,550 soldiers over the next year, with additional civilian support staff and a dedicated UN office to oversee operations.

But as Nathalye Cotrino of Human Rights Watch pointed out in an interview with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), “So far, what we have is a name change.” She and other observers argue that without a dramatic shift in approach – and substantial funding – the GSF risks replicating the MSS’s failures.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank, echoed these concerns. In an analysis, researchers Georges A. Fauriol and Mary Speck noted that while the GSF appears to be a “major escalation” of international involvement, “in reality, the new mission still needs to overcome the funding and personnel shortfalls that plagued the MSS.”

The UN itself has acknowledged the challenges. In a recent statement, it admitted that building up the force to its target strength “will take time” and that “it is still not clear which countries will provide personnel.” Funding remains a critical obstacle: the Security Council resolution establishing the GSF specifies that it will be financed primarily through voluntary contributions from UN Member States.

So far, Canada has pledged CAN$60 million to support the mission, while the United States and Barbados have made verbal commitments to provide logistical and technical assistance. But these contributions fall far short of the estimated hundreds of millions required to sustain a robust, year-long deployment.

Meanwhile, the gangs themselves show no sign of retreat. According to Antonal Mortimé, co-director of the Port-au-Prince-based human rights organization Défenseurs Plus, “Despite the announcement of its arrival, the armed groups are becoming more cruel and threatening. They continue to invade new zones and communes.”

The GSF’s first patrols, conducted jointly with Haitian police and army units, have yielded modest results. In its first major operation, the force claimed to have recaptured a key road from the Gran-Griff gang, securing supply routes to several police stations. However, the engagement illustrated the scale of the challenge: gang members reportedly dug trenches, occupied high-rise buildings, and launched Molotov cocktails at advancing troops.

While the GSF has been quick to publicize its early activities, experts warn that military operations alone cannot resolve the crisis. The roots of Haiti’s gang problem lie in decades of political instability, corruption, and poverty – conditions that have made the country fertile ground for organized crime.

Nathalye Cotrino emphasized that any lasting solution must include programs for rehabilitation and reintegration of former gang members, especially minors who were forcibly recruited. “We are not calling for an on-the-ground intervention force, but for a comprehensive international response,” she said. “We consider the GSF an important step, but an insufficient one.”

Indeed, history offers sobering lessons. Haiti has hosted several UN peacekeeping and stabilization missions since 1994, none of which succeeded in establishing durable security. The most infamous, the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), which operated from 2004 to 2017, left behind a legacy of sexual abuse scandals and a devastating cholera outbreak that killed thousands. That experience has left many Haitians deeply skeptical of foreign interventions, regardless of their stated purpose.

To avoid repeating those mistakes, rights groups are urging the UN to establish strict accountability measures. They insist that GSF personnel must be vetted, properly trained, and closely monitored to prevent abuses against civilians. “The last thing Haiti needs is another force that exploits its people under the guise of protection,” said Mortimé.

The new mission also faces a complex political landscape. Haiti has been without an elected government since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, and the transitional authorities have struggled to assert legitimacy. Many analysts fear that without a functioning government, the GSF’s efforts will lack local coordination and political backing – making it impossible to translate military gains into lasting stability.

Still, for ordinary Haitians, any sign of order brings a measure of hope. The GSF’s early operations, though limited, have reopened a few vital roads and allowed aid convoys to reach displaced communities. Yet these small victories remain fragile, dependent on sustained international attention and funding that may not materialize.

In the end, the question remains whether the Gang Suppression Force can break Haiti’s cycle of violence where others failed. Its success will depend not only on the size of its troops or the firepower it wields but on its ability to address the country’s underlying crises: governance, corruption, and poverty. Without that broader vision, even the most powerful UN mandate will amount to little more than a temporary pause in Haiti’s long descent into chaos.

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Source: Weekly Blitz :: Writings