About 20 gang members shot dead in Arcahaie, including leader known as Galaxy

Haiti's national police, the PNH, say they killed about 20 gang members in an operation carried out on 29 October in Arcahaie, northwest of Port-au-Prince. Among them was a leader known by the alias Galaxy. Other members of the gang were seriously wounded in the clashes, according to a statement the police released on Sunday. Diario Libre and El Nuevo Diario both report these details.

A response to Saturday's attack

Armed groups targeted the town on Saturday, after the 29 October operation. According to the police, several units moved in immediately to counter this new offensive. The PNH says it is holding its positions in Arcahaie and remains mobilized to continue its operations against the gangs, in order to preserve order and security in the threatened areas.

Local media also report that residents of Arcahaie helped the PNH. They add that motorcyclists dragged the bodies of some of the slain gangsters through the streets. Images of these scenes circulated on social media.

Salvadoran contingent searching for four soldiers

These police operations have intensified since the Salvadoran contingent arrived in Port-au-Prince. Its first mission is to find four "aerotécnicos" from that country, who were ambushed on 18 October in the Santo area of Croix-des-Bouquets. They were travelling in a GSF vehicle at the time, and their whereabouts have been unknown since. El Salvador has more than 2,000 soldiers on the ground.

Denials over bombings

The GSF has denied using bombings in its areas of operation, as Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele did the day before. The multinational force says it uses no explosive devices, either for the Salvadoran contingent or for the aircraft operating under its auspices. It adds that it acts according to its rules of engagement and in line with international human rights law, which prohibits such devices. In its words, limiting harm to civilians is a fundamental part of its operations, and any claim to the contrary is unfounded.

Bukele was responding on Saturday to UNA-Haiti, a New York-based NGO that represents part of the Haitian diaspora. On Wednesday, it had denounced indiscriminate bombings against innocent civilians. On his X account, the Salvadoran president wrote that the mission does not even have bombs. He added that his attack helicopters only arrived in Haiti on 29 October, an arrival widely covered by the media.

The GSF was created a year ago by the UN to contain the violence of the gangs that control most of Port-au-Prince.