The unrest in Haiti

Haitian members of the citizen guard "Bwa Kale". Ariana Cubillos / AP  

The unrest in Haiti Civil Guard reportedly killed 160 criminals in Haiti  

A citizen guard in Port-au-Prince says it has killed more than 160 gang members, the New York Times reports, citing the human rights group Cardh.  

The group, which calls itself "Bwa Kale" which is slang for erection in Creole, was started after wanting to stop the escalating crime around the capital Port-au-Prince.  

The Civil Guard's first attack took place on April 24 when a police station was stormed. They arrested 14 gang members who were in custody, poured gasoline over them and then set them on fire in the middle of the open street. 

Since then, the group is suspected of having lynched and murdered over 160 people who are said to be connected to gang crime.  

Experts are now warning that the violence could escalate and happen to be directed at residents without gang connections. 

- The country is close to anarchy, says human rights lawyer Nicole Phillips to the newspaper.  

Members of the citizen guard "Bwa Kale" in Haiti. Ariana Cubillos / AP 

Haitians divided: Innocents can be punished  

There are divided opinions in Haiti about the civil guard that is said to have lynched and murdered more than 160 gang criminals, AP reports. 

Weslander Al Cégaire, a cook in the southern town of Les Cayes, told the AP that his cousin was recently killed by members of the Guard calling themselves "Bwa Kale" while riding with a targeted motorcycle rider.  

- It's a good movement, but at the same time the innocent are punished instead of the guilty," says Cégaire.  

The shoe seller Marie, who works in Port-au-Prince, tells the New York Times that her store used to be robbed by criminals on a daily basis, but that she has now been left alone after the Civil Guard. 

- I support the group, but I don't like the way they do this, she says.

Acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry in May called on the group to lay down their weapons and remain calm.

Port-au-Prince, Haiti on Monday. Ariana Cubillos / AP 

 

Foreign Over 40 dead in landslides in Haiti  

 

At least 42 people have died and eleven are missing after severe floods and landslides in Haiti, AFP reports.  

 

According to local authorities, a total of 37,000 people have been affected by the storm and 13,300 people have been forced from their homes. 

 

The city of Léogâne, located southwest of the capital Port-au-Prince, is said to be the hardest hit, where a total of three rivers have flooded. 

 

- The residents are desperate, they have lost everything. The water has destroyed their fields, swept away their livestock, says the city's mayor, Ernson Henry. 

 

The disaster is the latest in a series of crises to plague Haiti, which is struggling with increased gang violence, economic crisis and political instability.