UN says at least 1,167 people were killed in Haiti between July and September

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti. At least 1,167 people were killed in Haiti between July and September, the United Nations reported on Wednesday, with a further 459 injured over the same period.

Deputy UN spokesman Farhan Haq told the daily news briefing that officials at the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) had recorded the figures "as serious human rights violations and abuse continued in Port-au-Prince and other parts of the country".

"Gang members were responsible for more than 45 per cent of those killed or injured, according to BINUH's report," Mr Haq said. He added that BINUH had documented a sharp rise in kidnappings, hundreds of cases of sexual violence by gang members, and the continued recruitment and exploitation of children.

BINUH said efforts to fight the gangs must respect international human rights law, and called for stronger protection for people affected by violence, accountability for abuses and continued international support for Haiti.

Prime minister's warning

Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé travelled to Kenscoff on Tuesday, visiting schools and meeting community leaders, police officers and others in the area.

"The gangs will not sleep soundly, there will be no respite for criminals, the gangs and their bosses will find no rest," he said, pointing to Haiti's security partnership with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele.

The operations come amid a larger international security presence, including 2,500 Salvadoran troops deployed after four Salvadoran aviation technicians went missing in a gang ambush last month. The four disappeared on 18 October after their armoured vehicle was attacked in Croix-des-Bouquets, a gang-controlled area north-east of Port-au-Prince.

Mr Bukele has said El Salvador is covering 90 per cent of the operation's costs and that the mission is not an invasion, while warning Haitian gangs of severe retaliation if the men are not returned.

Mr Fils-Aimé told the meeting in Kenscoff that the state and the police were determined to "eradicate this problem forever". "Don't play games with us," he said. "We have to get together."

Flood relief

The UN also said humanitarian partners were scaling up assistance after recent flooding in the south and west of the country, which has affected nearly 60,000 people and flooded more than 13,000 homes.

Mr Haq said food had been distributed to nearly 9,000 households in the South and Grand'Anse departments, along with hundreds of hygiene kits, and that partners planned to reach 14,000 more households in the South, Nippes and Grand'Anse with food or cash in the coming weeks.