A vigilante mob burned a group of 13 suspected gangsters to death in Haiti’s capital of Port-au-Prince on Monday.
The mob pulled the men from police custody after stopping their transport in traffic. They beat them before putting them in gasoline-soaked tires, which were then set ablaze.
Photos of the aftermath show witnesses covering their mouths and noses from the smoke and fumes.
In a statement, the Haitian National Police said officers were searching the minibus of a group of suspects for contraband and confiscated some weapons before the suspects were “unfortunately lynched by members of the population.”
One witness told the Associated Press that the group of 13 was headed to another part of the city where other gang members were battling with police.
Another six bodies were found burned in a nearby neighborhood. Some witnesses said they were killed by police in a shootout and set on fire by civilians, but those reports are unconfirmed.
Criminal gangs have taken control of as much as 60% of the city since President Jovenel Moise was assassinated by mercenaries in 2021, according to Haitian human rights groups and the UN. Monday’s killings occurred in Canape Vert, a neighborhood that is not controlled by gangs.
Those killed on Monday are believed to have been a part of Kraze Barye, a gang led by Vitel’Homme Innocent, who has been linked to Moise’s assassination.
The mob violence follows a January riot where hundreds of cops set fires and barricaded roads after gangsters killed 14 police officers.
“I applaud the considerable and meritorious efforts of the National Police to restore order and peace in our cities and neighborhoods,” Prime Minster Ariel Henry tweeted Monday. “There is still a lot to do. Our law enforcement is motivated, despite the challenges they face.”
The increasing violence has essentially turned Haiti into a war zone, according to a UN report published on Monday.
“The people of Haiti continue to suffer one of the worst human rights crises in decades and a major humanitarian emergency,” the report read.
Both Prime Minster Henry and the UN have called for an international coalition to assist Haitian police, but no country has volunteered to lead it.