Gangs in Haiti lure many children into crime and sexual abuse, HRW said, as 115 people were killed in the attacks.

still in Haiti gangs are rampant are luring more children into lives of crime and sexual abuse, as hunger and poverty in the small Caribbean nation oppress young people, according to a report published Wednesday by the US-based Human Rights Watch. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of more children have joined violent gangs in recent months, HRW said, with members forcing young people to commit crimes and subjecting them to sexual abuse and violence.

The bloodshed and political turmoil that has plagued Haiti show no sign of abating, as last week a gang attack in the town of Pont-Sondé, about 40 kilometers from the capital Port-au-Prince, killed 115 people and at least. Another 16 were seriously injured, according to local officials.

Myriam Fièvre, mayor of the nearby town of Saint-Marc, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the number of people attacked on October 3 could rise, as authorities had not been able to reach some areas of Pont-Sondé. At least three infants were among those killed, according to a previous statement from the United Nations Human Rights Commission.

A report by HRW published on Wednesday says that these gangs may have started to attract more children to their ranks because of the legal actions against their members by the Haitian police and the United Nations-backed Multinational Security Support Mission. MSS equipment has recently been approved by the United Nations. Led by Kenya, the movement is spread thinly.

Gangs control about 80% of Port-au-Prince, and HRW says joining gangs is often the only way children have to find food and shelter. About 125,000 children are suffering from extreme hunger in Haiti, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization. About 2.7 million people live in gang-controlled territory, including 500,000 children.

HRW says around a third of gang members are now believed to be children. An aid worker in the country told HRW that gangs use social media platforms including TikTok to attract young people.

HRW said the girls were sexually abused by gang members and forced to do domestic work once they entered.

“I [gang] leaders force them to perform sexual acts with themselves or their members while others watch,” HRW cites another humanitarian work. pleasure and exploitation.”

Boys are often used by gangs to carry out jobs, act as informants for police operations and transport weapons, HRW said, although they are sometimes assigned to help commit serious, violent crimes, including kidnapping and murder. Because of this, they are fed and often paid – money that new recruits often use to support family members who are facing poverty.

Gang members often use violence to control child soldiers once they are recruited, beating and threatening them if they refuse to follow orders. One boy interviewed by HRW told the organization that he initially joined a gang as an 8-year-old street orphan. He said he was given a gun and told to wear it on his back.

“Girls are rarely encouraged to be honest,” HRW said in the report, citing aid workers. “Instead, they are often released after a period of time, usually when they become pregnant as a result of rape.”

Despite the heightened violence, the US government has begun deporting some migrants back to the Haitian capital after temporarily suspending flights. The Biden administration, however, extended temporary protected status for Haitians in the US until 2025.

Former president Donald Trump you have swornif re-elected in November, to authorize mass deportations of immigrants, including Haitians.

HRW says more international aid is urgently needed in Haiti and in its new report, calls on the country’s interim government to prioritize programs to protect children. A transitional council took power in April and is mandated to restart Haiti’s crippled government after years of chaos. 2021 execution of President Jovenel Moïse.