US pledges to crack down on Haitian gangs making money off social media

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Mike Waltz, the U.S. envoy to the United Nations, said Monday that the U.S. government would soon move to stop violent gangs in Haiti from making money off social media posts.

Gang leaders in the troubled Caribbean country are prolific users of social media and have celebrated killings, issued threats and posted musings on various sites. Younger gang members also post music videos and wave cash they’ve earned in an effort to recruit children in the impoverished nation.

Waltz called the practice “incredibly disturbing” and warned the U.S. would “shut that down” in the near future. He didn’t provide further details while speaking at a U.N. Security Council meeting in New York.

Efforts to crack down on the gangs’ use of social media are not new. In 2023, YouTube banned Johnson André, also known as Izo and considered Haiti’s most powerful gang leader, following heavy criticism after he received an award for surpassing more than 100,000 subscribers.

Waltz, the U.S. envoy, also called on countries with aircraft capacity to help with the deployment of foreign troops joining the latest U.N.-backed mission in Haiti to fight gangs, including Sri Lanka and Côte d’Ivoire. He said sea lifts take too long and that Haitians need help now.

Gang violence has displaced a record almost 1.5 million people across Haiti, where more than half of the country’s nearly 12 million inhabitants need humanitarian aid.

More than 2,300 people have been killed and more than 1,100 injured since January, according to the U.N. Earlier this year, clashes in the Cite Soleil slum in Haiti’s capital alone led to 542 killings and 355 injuries. In addition, at least 176 women and girls were raped, the U.N. found.

Waltz shared how gangs recently surrounded an armored vehicle that got stuck in a ditch and lit a fire underneath it, forcing Haitian police officers to flee.

“They were flayed alive on the streets,” Waltz said, adding that their bodies were pinned to the side of the vehicle to send a message.

“I want everyone to understand the fight ahead,” he added.

Waltz noted that Haiti needs equipment including heavy bulldozers to clear streets and gang-controlled checkpoints, noting that armed men have taken over roads, ports, hospitals, prisons and other state infrastructure.

“Haiti’s just a few hundred miles from Florida,” he said. “In that regard, it’s a critical interest to the United States.”

Waltz spoke as the U.S. prepares this week to strip the temporary protected status of some 350,000 Haitians who live in the United States, exposing them to deportation, a move largely criticized by lawyers and human rights experts.

Gangs control an estimated 70% of Port-au-Prince, and up to one of two gang members are children, according to the U.N. Poverty and hunger also are deepening.

“The situation of children in Haiti is among the most alarming anywhere in the world,” said Vanessa Frazier, the U.N.’s special representative for children and armed conflict. “Children are being killed, maimed, abducted, recruited and used by armed gangs, displaced from their homes, denied access to education, and deprived of basic protection and legal identity.”

Jack Christofides, special representative of the gang suppression force operating in Haiti, said it has established its headquarters, deployed its first forward operating base and recently began cracking down on gang infrastructure.

“The political and humanitarian environment nevertheless remains extremely challenging,” he said. “Armed gangs are likely to adapt their tactics to stay in control. Meanwhile, humanitarian needs continue to soar.”

The international community has been pressuring Haiti to hold general elections, which would be the first in more than a decade. While the country is being led by Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, it hasn’t had a president since President Jovenel Moïse was killed at his private residence in July 2021. Gang violence has only surged since then.

Seven of Haiti’s 10 departments are ready for electoral activities, while the gang suppression force is vital to restoring security in the remaining three, said Raina Forbin, Haiti’s foreign affairs minister.

She noted that by year’s end, an additional 4,000 officers are expected to join Haiti’s National Police, which remains understaffed and underfunded. Meanwhile, an additional 1,500 recruits are expected to join Haiti’s revived Armed Forces.