UN SECURITY COUNCIL DECIDES FATE OF KENYAN LED HAITI MISSION IN HAITI

The United Nations (UN) Security Council has decided the fate of the Kenyan-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission in Haiti.
The UN Security Council on Tuesday, September 30, backed a resolution authorising the transition of the Kenyan-led support mission for Haiti into a new Gang Suppression Force (GSF), in close cooperation with Haitian authorities.
This resolution will now see the new GSF replace the MSS mission amid escalating gang violence, widespread rights abuses and a humanitarian emergency affecting all aspects of life in the island nation.
The resolution – co-penned by Panama and the United States and backed by dozens of countries in the region and beyond – was adopted by a vote of 12 in favour, with three abstentions from China, Pakistan, and Russia.
United States Ambassador Michael Waltz said it offered new hope for the country’s future as “a key first step” to address the humanitarian and security crisis there.
Under an initial 12-month mandate, the GSF will work in close coordination with the Haitian National Police (HNP) and the Haitian armed forces to conduct intelligence-led operations to neutralise gangs, provide security for critical infrastructure, and support humanitarian access.
The 5,550-strong force will also protect vulnerable groups, support the reintegration of former fighters, and help strengthen Haitian institutions.
“The Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, authorised by the Security Council in October 2023, faced chronic underfunding, insufficient personnel, and limited operational capacity, making it difficult to contain gangs that now control large parts of the capital, Port-au-Prince,” said the United Nations.
“While the MSS enabled the HNP to regain access to some areas and infrastructure, it struggled to match the scale of the crisis. Kenya, which led the MSS, also backed the new mechanism.”