Haiti on brink of famine as unrelenting gang warfare pushes thousands to flee violence

Nearly half of Haiti's population is currently facing the grim reality of struggling to secure their next meal as gang violence tightens its grip.

International organizations issued a dire warning on Friday, painting a bleak picture of a nation on the brink of famine, with alarming levels of food insecurity exacerbated by inflation and agricultural setbacks.

Jean-Martin Bauer, the World Food Programme's director for Haiti, emphasized the urgency of the situation and encouraged immediate action.

He said: "Rising hunger is fueling the security crisis that is shattering the country. We need urgent action now — waiting to respond at scale is not an option."

According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), approximately 4.97 million Haitians, out of a total population of 11.5 million, are grappling with crisis or even worse levels of food insecurity.

READ MORE: Haiti expat gripped by fear as mother and young niece stuck in Port-au-Prince

The situation is most dire in eight areas, including the once-thriving Artibonite valley, now besieged by gangs expanding from the capital, Port-au-Prince, and rural regions of the Grand-Anse peninsula.

The recent surge in violence, characterized by brazen attacks on police stations and even the international airport, has plunged the nation into chaos, claiming thousands of lives and displacing hundreds of thousands.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry, facing mounting pressure, finds himself stranded abroad after a diplomatic mission to Kenya, unable to return as efforts to establish a transitional council stall.

Meanwhile, the World Food Programme reports that Haiti is enduring its worst levels of food insecurity on record, with armed groups seizing farmlands and destroying crops, leaving desperate families with no choice but to take on more debt to survive. So far, only 5 percent of Haitians have received humanitarian food aid.

The dire situation has prompted a mass exodus from the capital, with over 30,000 people fleeing violence and scarcity in just two weeks, seeking refuge wherever they can find it.

However, neighboring Dominican Republic's reluctance to support an aid air bridge further complicates relief efforts, leaving Haiti to grapple with its crisis alone.

Laurent Uwumuremyi, leading the Haiti arm of the aid group Mercy Corps, painted a grim picture of life in the capital, with gangs now controlling nearly 90 percent of the city.

Basic errands are impossible, vital infrastructure lies in ruins, and hospitals are on the edge of collapse. Even affluent neighborhoods like Petion-Ville have seen their residents barricaded indoors in fear.

Uwumuremyi warned: "If the situation deteriorates without any efforts to address the unfolding humanitarian crisis, Port-au-Prince will soon find itself completely overwhelmed."

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