Massacre in Jean-Denis: At least 70 killed as gangs expand beyond Port-au-Prince
At 2am on 29 March, the Gran Grif gang attacked the rural settlement of Jean-Denis in Haiti's Artibonite department. Survivor Merçide Daniel, a 45-year-old mother of four, described the assault: 'Pow, pow, pow – quick gunfire coming towards us from all directions. It was the Gran Grif gang coming to take over our neighbourhood and turn it into a base.' Dozens of men in civilian clothes and bandanas, carrying rifles, swarmed through the village shooting indiscriminately. Residents fleeing were gunned down; others were dragged from homes and executed at close range. Homes were set ablaze, some with people trapped inside. By morning, dozens of bodies lay scattered on the roads.
Victims across generations
The Guardian used dozens of verified videos, photographs, witness testimony and satellite imagery to reconstruct the massacre. At least 70 civilians were killed, and thousands fled. Among the dead: Marie Elvire Louis, 80, shot in the neck and chest outside her home; Kenold François, a father of four, shot multiple times in the abdomen; Estimable Fils-Aimé, 85, burned alive when his house was set on fire; Oldy Thomas, 28, shot while fleeing; Berlancia Dor, 8, shot in the chest and killed instantly; and Thélomène Thelot, 62, shot three times and then lynched. Daniel lost five family members: two uncles, an aunt and two cousins. 'I had never seen anything like this before,' she said. 'It was a massacre.'
Gang violence spreading across Haiti
Unrelenting gang warfare has ravaged Port-au-Prince for years, with cartels controlling large parts of the capital and causing near-total state collapse. Now gangs are pushing into rural areas, attacking farming communities and seizing key roads. According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data project (ACLED), violent incidents in Artibonite rose from 39 in 2021 to 238 in 2025. In Centre department, incidents increased from seven to 111. Nationwide, violent incidents surged from 615 in 2021 to 1,626 in 2025. Nearly 6,000 people died in gang violence in 2025, and about 1.4 million people – more than a tenth of the population – have been displaced, according to the UN.
Gangs entrench along key routes
Gangs are establishing control over transit routes in and out of Port-au-Prince and along the border with the Dominican Republic, used for drug trafficking, weapons smuggling, and extortion. William O'Neill, the UN expert on human rights in Haiti, said: 'There's been a big increase of gangs fighting for control of key roads and junctions. Why? Because they're money-making. It's hugely remunerative and strategically important.' The UN warned in December that Haiti was 'rapidly becoming a central hub' for international drug trafficking. Some groups have also expanded towards the coastline, extorting boats and carrying out armed robberies at sea.
State response and impunity
Haitian national police, supported by foreign personnel and private security contractors, have intensified operations against gang strongholds in the capital since late 2025. According to Human Rights Watch, at least 1,243 people were killed in 141 drone-strike operations between March 2025 and January 2026. However, analysts say gangs are exploiting the transition period as a new UN-backed Gang Suppression Force is not expected to reach its planned strength of 5,500 until autumn. Ulrick Tintin of Défenseurs Plus said: 'Impunity is why the violence continues to worsen every day.' Few gang leaders are arrested or prosecuted. Pierre Espérance of Haiti's National Human Rights Defence Network added: 'There is no life in Haiti. The people have been abandoned.'
