11 Inmates killed in prison break clash in Haiti

By Dilara Hamit

A prison break in the Saint-Marc region of western Haiti resulted in a clash that left 11 inmates dead on Friday, police said.

Haiti National Police spokesperson Michel Ange Louis Jeune said the clash occurred as inmates attempted to escape from the prison that housed 540 inmates.

Jeune confirmed that 11 inmates were killed during the incident, and one inmate was recaptured.

Local newspaper Le Nouvelliste said prison guards had gone on strike demanding better working conditions, which might have played a role in the escape.

Government commissioner Vension Francois expressed concerns of a potential “mutiny,” suggesting the possibility of guard complicity.

Videos circulating on social media captured scenes of smoke and fire billowing from the prison, with gunfire reported nearby. The number of inmates held at the prison at the time of the escape remains unclear.

This marks the third prison break in Haiti this year. In March, gangs orchestrated a mass escape from the country’s two largest prisons in the capital, Port-au-Prince, as part of a series of attacks that ultimately led to the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

Haitian prisons are notoriously overcrowded and plagued by dire conditions. The country’s broken judicial system often leaves inmates in pre-trial detention for years, with a UN report revealing that only 1,892 of the 11,816 inmates held in Haiti last year had been convicted of a crime.