Hospital in Haiti reopens after increase in gang violence

The Doctors Without Borders emergency center is back in operation after being closed as a consequence of increased gang violence in Haiti. The hospital, situated in Port-au-Prince, reopened in early March.

The facility was closed after a confrontation between medical staff and one among the domestic gangs. According to Dr. James Gana, who works for the humanitarian organization, gang members surrounded an ambulance approaching the hospital and killed a patient contained in the vehicle. He common details December 2023 incident on NBC News.

“The ambulance was surrounded by armed men who broke into the ambulance and executed the patient,” Gana recalled. “It was a few meters from our hospital.”

Gangs control much of the country’s capital, and the increased violence leaves Ghana no selection but to reopen the ability and take care of patients. However, individuals who need medical help are more reluctant to hunt it out of fear of gang retaliation.

The president’s assassination in 2021 unleashed a wave of chaos in the country. Since then, the emptiness in power has been filled by criminal groups, collapsing Haiti’s political infrastructure. Gana believes the healthcare system will likely be next in line.

“The healthcare system has been steadily deteriorating for many years,” said a 30-year-old resident of Nigeria. “But now he’s really at the breaking point.”

However, Haiti turned to the United Nations for help to revive order and end the violence. The UN Security Council authorized the Multinational Security Assistance mission, but activities in this area have been relatively suspended. Meanwhile, no industrial flights are leaving Haiti, leaving foreign visitors with no selection but to contact their embassies to flee the country.

The mission, led by Kenya and supported by the US with $200 million, continues to be heading in the right direction to finish. However, the White House has strongly opposed sending U.S. troops to the Caribbean island as a part of a stabilization effort. Despite this, the Haitian Prime Minister stays in Puerto Rico and no government helps him return as a consequence of the harmful conditions.

Haiti’s remaining hospitals are battling low supplies, including medicines and fuel for generators, as they wait for international aid to quell the violence.