UN Reports millions in Haiti face acute hunger epidemic as armed groups tighten control – JURIST
The UN on Friday highlighted how millions of Haitians are facing severe food insecurity as armed groups continue to expand their territorial control around the country, according to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) hunger report. The data paints a dire picture: 5.7 million people, over half the population, are now classified in ‘Crisis’ or worse (IPC Phase 3 or above), marking one of the deepest humanitarian crises in the Western Hemisphere.
Of these, 1.9 million Haitians (17 percent) are suffering Emergency-level hunger (IPC Phase 4), with large food gaps, acute malnutrition, and excess mortality risks. An additional 3.8 million people (34 percent) face Crisis conditions (IPC Phase 3), often forced to deplete what little they have just to survive. IPC warns the situation could deteriorate further by mid-2026, when the lean season begins, projecting that 5.9 million people, 53 percent of the population, will face acute food insecurity.
Armed gangs have seized control of critical roads, farmlands, and ports, displacing over 1.3 million people, a 24 percent increase since December 2024, according to the International Organization for Migration. The number of displacement sites rose from 246 to 272 between June and July 2025, following armed attacks in the Centre department.
Since mid-July, repeated assaults in Dessalines, Verettes, Liancourt, and Petite Rivière in the Lower Artibonite region have forced thousands to flee. Thousands of people now reside in overcrowded temporary sites that lack basic amenities such as sanitation, clean water, and medical care. Cholera risks are rising, while reports of sexual violence, trauma, and severe hunger are multiplying.
Haiti’s 1987 Constitution enshrines the right to life, health, and social welfare, now threatened by the state’s inability to secure food and safety. Haiti also ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) in 2013, which obligates the government to respect, protect, and fulfill the right to adequate food. Under these standards, the Haitian state may bear responsibility for failing to take “appropriate measures” to prevent foreseeable rights violations caused by hunger and displacement.
Friday’s news comes as the UN Security Council voted on September 30 to replace Haiti’s struggling international police mission with a far larger, more aggressive force aimed at reclaiming the country from gang control and restoring democratic governance.
The Council approved a new “gang-suppression force” of 5,500 military, police, and civilian personnel, replacing the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) that has struggled since its 2023 deployment. The new force, drafted under a U.S.- and Panama-sponsored resolution, will be authorized to operate independently of Haitian forces, conduct arrests, and carry out “intelligence-led targeted, counter-gang operations to neutralize, isolate, and deter gangs.” It will also secure vital infrastructure, including ports, airports, and schools, during an initial 12-month mandate. Twelve of the Council’s fifteen members, including the US, voted in favor; Russia, China, and Pakistan abstained.
