More Kenyan police officers deployed to combat violence in Haiti | In Pictures News

Another 200 Kenyan police officers have arrived in Haiti as part of a United Nations-backed mission to curb rampant gang violence in the crisis-ridden Caribbean country.

With the new force arriving on Tuesday, there are now a total of 400 Kenyan soldiers on site in the violence-stricken capital Port-au-Prince, Haitian sources said.

The Kenyan contingent of what is becoming a multinational mission has faced ongoing legal challenges in Nairobi, while controversial President William Ruto simultaneously tries to calm burgeoning anti-government protests at home.

In the coming weeks and months, more Kenyans are expected, as well as police and soldiers from the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Chad and Jamaica. In total, 2,500 men will be present.

The deployment was authorized by a UN Security Council resolution in October, but was delayed in January by a Kenyan court ruling that declared the deployment unconstitutional.

The court said Ruto’s government had no authority to send officials abroad without prior bilateral agreement.

Although the government was able to negotiate this agreement with Haiti in March, a small opposition party, the Thirdway Alliance Kenya, has filed a lawsuit in another attempt to block the agreement.

The United States had eagerly sought a country to lead the mission and is providing financial and logistical support.

President Joe Biden flatly ruled out sending American ground troops to Haiti.

Human Rights Watch has raised concerns about the Haiti mission and doubts about its funding, while the watchdog has repeatedly accused the Kenyan police of using excessive force and carrying out unlawful killings.

Haiti has long been plagued by gang violence, but the situation worsened dramatically in late February when armed groups launched coordinated attacks in Port-au-Prince, declaring they wanted to overthrow then-Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

The violence in Port-au-Prince is affecting food security and access to humanitarian aid. Large parts of the city are in the hands of gangs who are accused of human rights violations such as murder, rape, looting and kidnapping.