5.5 million Haitians need humanitarian assistance: UN

By Merve Aydogan

ONTARIO, Canada (AA) - The UN announced Thursday that 5.5 million people out of the 11.4 million who reside in Haiti need humanitarian assistance, with 3 million being children.

"Haiti, obviously, is a humanitarian crisis of quite profound magnitude," Ulrika Richardson, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Haiti, said in a virtual news conference.

Attributing the crisis in Haiti to political instability and widespread insecurity, Richardson said: "Enormous amount of people have had to flee their neighborhoods as the gangs take over them."

"There is a human suffering of an alarming scale," she said.

Citing a previous statement about January being the "most violent month" in the last two years, Richardson said, "Sadly enough, we could confirm that February was even more vital," resulting in the killing of 2,500 people in two months.

Richardson underscored the need for solidarity from the international community, emphasizing that "time is running out."

In response to a question about the possibility of the UN leaving Haiti, Richardson stated: "We are not at that stage yet."

She noted that the UN is working to support Haitians in every way possible and expressed hope for the deployment of a multinational security force as soon as possible.

Haiti has been struggling with gang violence and political instability for years. The situation dramatically deteriorated in recent months, with kidnappings, killings, armed robberies and other violent crimes becoming commonplace.

The rampant instability has further exacerbated an exodus of migrants from Haiti, and Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigned last week after fleeing the island nation.

According to the International Organization for Migration, since Feb. 29, several neighborhoods in the Metropolitan Area of Port-au-Prince have been targeted by increased armed attacks, with nearly 15,000 people displaced as a result.