The United Nations has confirmed many complaints of sexual abuse against personnel of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) operation in Haiti.
According to people familiar with the situation, the charges have been investigated and confirmed, raising major questions about accountability inside the multinational anti-gang force.
According to a recent United Nations report on Special Measures for Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, four different rape instances involving mission members were reported and later confirmed through investigations.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights performed the investigations with the victims, who were all female and aged 12, 16, and 18.
The UN Security Council authorized Kenya’s MSS mission, which began deploying police personnel to Haiti in June 2024, to de-escalate gang violence in the war-torn Caribbean island.
Despite the mandate, the UN has continued to document claims of misbehavior against the personnel under a mechanism designed to avoid abuse in foreign operations.
The study classified all four sexual misconduct charges as ‘violations corroborated’, but the actions taken in response to these findings are unclear, with the majority of cases still labeled as ‘pending’.
In the case of the 12-year-old victim, the report states that the mission launched an internal investigation, but no other information was supplied.
UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric added that the organisation would also follow up on similar incidents with the newly deployed anti-gang force, emphasizing the importance of accountability during the anti-gang operation.
The new Chadian contingent, which arrived in Haiti on Wednesday, April 1, is intended to impose stronger measures to prevent future human rights breaches.