Two hundred police officers from Kenya arrived in Port-au-Prince on Thursday to join the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), led by the African nation with the aim of curbing extreme violence in Haiti.

Upon their arrival at Toussaint Louverture International Airport aboard a Kenya Airways plane, the officers, including members of the elite SWAT team, were welcomed by Leslie Voltaire, head of the Presidential Transition Council, and Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier-Fils Aimé, along with representatives from the diplomatic corps, Rameau Normil, director of the Haitian National Police, and Godfey Otunge, head of the multinational mission.

This marks the fourth contingent from Kenya to join the mission, bringing the total number of Kenyan officers involved to around 900. They are joined by troops from Guatemala, El Salvador (70 of whom arrived on Tuesday), as well as personnel from The Bahamas, Jamaica, and Belize, surpassing a total of 1,100 members.

“The Government of Kenya had committed to deploying 1,000 personnel and is close to achieving that goal. This is a significant step towards fulfilling the MSS mandate,” said Otunge. Following the arrival of the Kenyans, a large Antonov cargo plane landed at the terminal carrying three helicopters and other equipment for the MSS.

As Commander Otunge noted, “the path to this deployment has not been easy. Our international and national partners have played a key role in the success of this phase.” He expressed gratitude to donor countries—especially the U.S., Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Turkey, and South Korea—for “honoring their commitments. Their support has been essential in bringing the mission to its current level.”

“In this critical phase of decisive operations, we urge other donor countries that have not yet honored their commitments to do so. Their contributions are vital for ensuring the success of this mission, which will represent an important turning point for Haiti,” Otunge emphasized.

He highlighted that they are close to achieving full operational capacity and expressed confidence in reaching their objectives.

This development comes amid U.S. denials that “all assistance to the Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti” has been suspended after the UN announced an order to “cease immediately” Washington’s contributions.

In response to this situation, Otunge stated that the mission “continues uninterrupted with all necessary mechanisms on the ground.” The only measure currently pending is a temporary suspension of approximately $13 million from U.S. contributions to UN special allocation funds for MSS while awaiting a comprehensive review of development aid from that country.

On the same day, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured that his country would continue supporting the multinational mission so it can “deal with” gangs and create security conditions in Haiti.

The UN Security Council authorized sending a support mission for Haiti’s National Police in October 2023 in response to a request made a year earlier by Haitian authorities aimed at eradicating gang violence that currently controls about 85% of metropolitan Port-au-Prince.

According to verified data from the UN, at least 5,626 people died in Haiti in 2024 due to actions by criminal gangs (1,000 more than the previous year), with 2,213 injured and 1,494 kidnapped. In mid-January, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that the number of displaced persons in Haiti has tripled in just one year and surpassed one million (1,041,000), more than half of whom are children.

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