Haiti’s Prime Minister travels to the US as capital of Kenya’s police patrol

The US is the main funder of a Kenyan-led international security force that the United Nations says is to be sent to Haiti to help police fight armed gangs that have plunged the country into a humanitarian crisis.

Haiti’s former government first requested the force in 2022 and the first deployment of Kenyan police arrived this week, although it is unclear when the rest of the force – expected to number more than 2,500 – will arrive.

As Kenyan police, dressed in khaki, bulletproof vests and helmets, patrolled the city in black armored vehicles, Port-au-Prince residents hoped that the police could put an end to the indiscriminate killings and allow trade to resume.

“We need peace. If the Kenyan police are here, it is so that we can go back to the life we ​​had before. We hope they have started working seriously,” said resident Kloud Dine.

“We need the Kenyans here for a while because the gang members are making us suffer too much,” added Louise Baret, a painter. “Enough is enough.”