Forty migrants die off the coast of Haiti

Aug 02, 2024

PORT-AU-PRINCE: At least 40 migrants have died and dozens more have been injured after the boat they were travelling on caught fire just off the coast of Haiti.

According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), which announced the news on July 19, the coastguard was able to rescue another 40 people. The tragedy is yet another consequence of the harsh reality that Haitians are attempting to flee from as they undergo perilous journeys in search of safety outside of their violent nation.

Between January and May, armed gangs controlling the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, have killed more than 3,000 people. The spiral of violence has forced more than half a million people to flee their homes.

The boat, which reportedly had at least 80 migrants on board, had left the northern city of Cap-Haïtien at around 4.00am local time on July 17 and was headed for the islands of Turks and Caicos, British Overseas Territories, 250km from Haiti.

The migration situation in the country is desperate. More than 86,000 people have been forcibly repatriated to Haiti this year alone. Since February 29, local authorities have observed an increase in attempts to leave by sea, an observance which has been confirmed by interceptions of boats at sea by the US, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands and Jamaica.

Just a week before the incident, a second group of 200 police officers from Kenya arrived in the capital, Port-au-Prince, as part of an international security operation supported by the UN to counter the overwhelming power of armed gangs, which control at least 80 per cent of the city. -- Vatican News