The President of Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council (TPC), Fritz Alphonse Jean, visited a camp where the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission team in Haiti is based and reaffirmed commitment to the operations there.
This followed the killing of a Kenyan policeman in operation in Haiti on March 25.
He held a meeting with MSS leadership, led by Force Commander Godfrey Otunge and other leaders. This comes amid search for the body in the troubled city.
Fritz reiterated Haiti’s commitment to collaborating with MSS officers and other stakeholders in the search for a Kenyan officer who went missing on March 25, 2025, in the Pont-Sondé area of the Artibonite Department.
Administration Police Constable (APC) Benedict Kabiru is missing after he was killed in an ambush by the gang. Fritz commended the MSS contingents for their service to the Haitian people.
He also praised the strong and productive working relationship between the Haitian National Police (HNP) and MSS officers.
He encouraged the MSS troops to remain resolute and dedicated in their mission to create a safer Haiti.
Addressing the MSS personnel, he expressed his gratitude for their commitment to protecting the Haitian people from gang violence.
Otunge assured him that MSS officers remain motivated and steadfast in their duties. He highlighted the successes MSS has achieved so far and welcomed the Haitian leadership’s collaborative efforts in the search for the missing Kenyan officer.
He commended the officer’s bravery in confronting gangs and striving for a safer Haiti. Otunge also expressed appreciation for the local community in Pont-Sondé, acknowledging their continued cooperation with MSS and HNP in the fight against gang violence and their efforts in the search for the missing officer.
Accompanying the TPC President were Prime Minister Didier Fils-Aimé, former TPC President Leslie Voltaire, and HNP Director General Rameau Normil, along with other dignitaries.
“The TPC President and Prime Minister reaffirmed their unwavering commitment to ensuring that the missing Administration Police Constable (APC) Benedict Kabiru is found,” a statement said.
After the attack, videos were shared online purporting to show the officer’s body lying on the ground. The body has not been found since then.
Kenyan authorities have since deployed specialized teams to recover his body, which remains in the custody of the gangs.
Kabiru comes from Kikuyu, Kiambu County where his family is in denial about the developments in Haiti. They say they are yet to be formally informed about the incident even though authorities say they had delivered the message to them.
Kabiru is the latest Kenyan officer to die in Haiti, where questions continue to grow over the mission’s risks and the safety of the deployed officers.
His death comes just a month after another Kenyan officer, Police Constable Samuel Tompoi Kaetuai, was fatally shot during an anti-gang operation in the Artibonite region on February 23, 2025.
With gangs in Haiti growing more aggressive and police units facing logistical challenges, concerns are emerging over how many more Kenyan officers may have already been killed or could soon lose their lives in the volatile operation.
The latest attack occurred when three armoured vehicles carrying peacekeepers got stuck in a ditch, suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs.
As officers attempted to recover the vehicles, they were ambushed, leading to Kabiru’s fatal shooting.
The MSS mission, led by Kenya, was launched to support Haitian authorities in restoring order amid escalating gang violence.
However, with the increasing number of casualties and operational difficulties, pressure is mounting on Kenyan authorities to address growing concerns over the safety and effectiveness of the deployment.
The incident came as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio launched a tour of the Caribbean with Haiti’s security crisis high on the agenda.
The US has been a key financial supporter of MSS, and the security crisis in Haiti is a focus of Secretary Rubio’s visit to the Caribbean this week.
On Wednesday, Rubio met Jean in Jamaica. The Haitian government said the meeting was meant to strengthen regional cooperation related to its challenges.
Over 80% of Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince has been estimated to be under gang control.
Since the MSS arrived, gangs have spread increasingly into rural areas, seizing swathes of territory in the agriculturally critical Artibonite region.
In October, the United Nations said least 70 people, including women and children, were massacred by the Gran Grif gang in the same Artibonite town where the officer was killed on Tuesday.
Violence in Port-au-Prince has led to record levels of displacement, exacerbating humanitarian conditions, UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said during a press briefing on Wednesday.
Nearly 23,000 people were displaced in just one week in March, he said. The crisis has also cut into vital supply lines across the country. “Beyond the worrying situation in the capital, almost half of the entire population – that’s 5.5 million human beings – is going hungry, one of the highest proportions in any crisis around the world,” Dujarric said.
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