UN Security Council approves ‘Gang Suppression Force’ for Haiti

The UN Security Council approved transforming Haiti into a “Gang Suppression Force” from an international security force that already exists there.

The force’s clear mandate is to “neutralize, isolate, and deter” gangs, secure infrastructure, and work with local authorities to secure institutional stability, according to the council’s resolution on Friday. The current mission’s personnel cap, which was initially approved in 2023, would be raised to 5, 550 personnel.

In order to provide more logistical support to Haiti as it grapples with its overlapping security, humanitarian, and political crises, the resolution recommends that the UN secretary-general establish a UN Support Office there.

Following the vote, Panama’s representative to the UN, Eloy Alfaro De Alba, said, “The result today allows us to have the necessary reconfiguration on the ground to address the country’s insecurity situation.”

Alfaro De Alba remarked, “Today, we tell Haiti that you are not alone. For all.”

The most recent resolution was first introduced in August by Panama and the US. On Tuesday, it received 12 votes for and 1 against. Members of the Permanent Security Council, including rotating members Pakistan and China, did not cast a ballot.

Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia claimed that “the international aid to Haiti” that had been approved by the Security Council “failed to produce any sustainable results.”

He criticized the resolution for having a “virtually unrestricted mandate to use force against anyone and everyone labelled with the vague term “gangs,” and added that the plan was “ill-conceived and rushed.”

In light of the widespread sexual abuses committed by peacekeepers in Haiti following the earthquake, which was a controversial history, especially in light of the country’s history. A cholera outbreak that claimed the lives of about 10,000 people was also caused by the forces.

However, Laurent Saint-Cyr, the current head of Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council, expressed support for a new force last week during the UN General Assembly General Debate, noting that the Kenyan-led security support mission has been woefully understaffed and underfunded.

Despite an initial pledge of 2,500, less than 1, 000 police officers have been stationed under the mission, which is scheduled to end on October 2. Port au Prince, the capital’s center, is still largely under the control of powerful gangs.

According to Saint-Cyr, “it is a war between criminals who want to impose violence as the social order and an unarmed population trying to preserve human dignity.”

At least 1.3 million Haitians are still internally displaced as a result of violence, and 5.7% are facing food insecurity, according to the UN. Between January and June 2025, at least 3,100 people died in violent incidents. At least 2,300 serious child abuses have been reported.

The nation is also at the center of a political crisis that began with Jovenel Moise’s 2021 assassination. In response to the unrest, a general election has been repeatedly postponed.

Acting Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime praised the resolution’s adoption on Tuesday.

He stated, “This decision represents a significant advance in the international community’s partnership.”

A renewed international mission to Haiti has also been offered hesitant support from rights observers, with Human Rights Watch stating last week that any operation must have reliable funding and safeguards for human rights.

Instead, parties must work to establish those rules in accordance with “Haiti’s sovereignty and in strict compliance with international law,” according to the resolution passed on Tuesday.