BINUH said gang violence was largely responsible for the 1,223 murders reported in the third trimester, but law enforcement carried out at least 106 extrajudicial killings and the victims included six 10-year-old children accused of providing information to gang members. .

Of the 106 extrajudicial killings, 96 were carried out by police officers and 10 by Jean Ernest Muscadin, the prosecutor of the southern coastal city of Miragoâne. Overall, BINUH said Muscadin has been accused of killing at least 36 people since 2022 who were suspected of being gang members or committing “common crimes.”

A spokesman for the Haitian National Police did not respond to requests for comment, while Muscadin declined to comment and hung up when reached by phone.

The gangs now have an estimated 5,500 members, according to a U.N. Security Council report released on Monday, often recruiting children who work as scouts, carry weapons and ammunition and even participate in conflicts. He noted that children may represent up to 50 percent of all gang members.

“The dire situation in Haiti makes children more vulnerable to recruitment by gangs,” the report stated. “Lack of access to education, employment and basic needs creates a situation where joining gangs is seen as the only viable way to survive.”

According to the BINUH report, at least 669 people were killed during police operations against gangs during this three-month period; Three-quarters of the victims were suspected gang members and one-quarter were civilians.

“The information collected… points to the possible disproportionate use of lethal force during police operations and the lack of precautionary measures to protect the public,” BINUH said.

From July to September, the number of deaths or injuries increased by 27 percent compared to the second trimester, but there was a 32 percent decrease compared to the first trimester.

According to the report, the majority of murders and injuries (234 people) occurred in Port-au-Prince’s La Saline slum; Most occurred in residents’ makeshift homes as gangs vied for control of Haiti’s main port and container terminal, according to the report.

BINUH said gangs also recently invaded the Carrefour and Gressier communities in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, “using extreme brutality to bring residents under their control.”

At least 122 murders were blamed on self-defense groups formed last year that targeted suspected gang members or people accused of crimes including stealing animals or stealing cellphones.

“The victims were dismembered with machetes, stoned, decapitated, burned alive or buried alive,” the report said. “Children were not protected”

Overall, at least 59 children were killed or injured in the third trimester.

The UN noted that the number of self-defense groups doubled from January to July to around 60.

The bulk of the violence continues to be concentrated in the central region of Artibonite and the capital of Port-au-Prince, where dozens of people were killed in a massacre earlier this month.

According to the report, the number of kidnappings dropped to 170 in the third quarter compared to the beginning of this year; More than 60 percent of cases occurred in Artibonite.

At least 428 people were kidnapped in the second trimester.

Sexual violence remains common; At least 55 victims, including girls and women aged 10 to 70, reported gang rape, according to the report, which noted that such cases are largely under-reported.

BINUH said that women and girls were attacked in their homes, while walking on the street or using public transportation, and some were sexually abused by gang members for months.

Gang violence, which has left more than 700,000 people homeless in recent years, escalated this month as gunmen tried to take over Solino, one of the last communities in Port-au-Prince not under their control.

“People’s lives are being completely destroyed,” said Jean Renel Volma, a 55-year-old unemployed security guard who recently fled Solino with his wife and two children after living there for more than two decades.

“It was dark, there was massive gunfire, everyone was screaming. “This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen in Solino,” he said, recalling that they escaped with only the clothes they were wearing.

Volma, originally from the southern coastal town of Les Cayes, said he could not seek refuge there because gangs controlled the main roads into Port-au-Prince: “I don’t know what to do. There’s no way out.”

Volma is one of hundreds of people who flocked to a church in nearby Nazon on Wednesday after being left homeless by gunfire that echoed nearby. The UN report said gangs targeted Solino and Delmas 24 to gain access to middle-class neighborhoods, including Nazon.

“The aim is to generate more revenue from kidnappings and extortions in this rich region,” he said.

Among those temporarily living in the church is Alicia Joseph, a 60-year-old mother of three. There was no room for her while her children lived with a friend who took them in.

“I think this is the end of my life. I’ve lost everything,” he said.

His casualties include his 85-year-old mother, who was unable to escape with the rest of the family during the gang’s attack.

“I thought they would spare her life,” Joseph said, adding that his mother died after her home was set on fire by gangs.