Link : The Guardian website
Client : The Guardian
Category : Journalism, Writing

The 3 October rampage in Pont-Sondé has led to entreaties for international support before gangs make their next move

Etienne Côté-Paluck in Port-au-Prince and Tom Phillips
Wed 16 Oct 2024 14.00 BST

The killers came under the cover of darkness, stealing across the Artibonite River on an abandoned bridge before marauding through this once-tranquil rural community with automatic rifles and knives.

“[They] were like headless chickens, shooting at anyone they saw,” said Louisseul François, a resident of the Haitian town of Pont-Sondé, who somehow survived the slaughter.

François heard the first shots of the gang invasion at about 3am, leapt from his bed and gathered at the town entrance with members of a local vigilante group called “the coalition”. Despite their attempts to organize, its members soon realized they were outgunned. They fled into the surrounding hills, where bleary-eyed, petrified locals were cowering.

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Photo : Odelyn Joseph/AP