Haiti, still reeling from the power vacuum left after the assassination of its president last year, is dealing with surging violence by armed groups that has left hundreds dead and displaced tens of thousands of people in its capital, Port-au-Prince. The United Nations (UN) has documented a sharp increase in violence this year, with 934 killings, 684 injuries and 680 kidnappings in Port-au-Prince from January to the end of June. In recent months, armed clashes have again destroyed water networks and disrupted water truck deliveries in some neighborhoods. Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontiéres (MSF) teams are adapting to the rising insecurity by operating mobile medical teams and providing water and sanitation facilities.
Despite crippling violence and a humanitarian crisis in Haiti, the Biden administration continues a policy of expelling Haitians on deportation flights. Most Haitians have been expelled under Title 42, a health order invoked at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic that allows for the blocking and rapid expulsion of migrants, including people seeking protection at the US border. While deportation flights to Haiti have been paused since June, without a change in US policy, Haitians who arrive at the US border could still be expelled back to what has effectively become a conflict zone.
