13 hostages, including 6 children, freed by Haitian gang following murder spree

Thirteen hostages — including six children and seven women — have been freed by a Haitian gang following a murderous rampage that left 47 dead and more than 50 others abducted in a once-tranquil farming community outside Port-au-Prince.

The group released late Friday from Kenscoff includes three toddlers under the age of 2, a 7-year-old, and two teenage girls, UNICEF confirmed. 

While the release offers a “rare moment of hope,” Yannig Dussart, UNICEF’s deputy representative in Haiti, warned that the abduction remains a “stark reminder of the scale and frequency of attacks on children across the country.”

A woman mourns near the bodies of people killed during an overnight raid by an armed gang on Aug. 24, 2026, in Kenscoff, Haiti. REUTERS

Working alongside community leaders, UNICEF secured the freedom of the seven women and six children. 

However, the fate of the remaining hostages remains uncertain, and it is not yet clear if those released required immediate medical intervention.

The mass abduction has further destabilized a nation already teetering on collapse since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise. 

While kidnappings are a grim staple of life in Haiti, the scale of this attack is unusual, and the outcomes are chillingly unpredictable. 

Some victims are freed without ransom, while others are executed even after payments are made.

Residents gather next to the covered bodies of people killed during an overnight raid by an armed gang on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince, in Kenscoff, Haiti, on Aug. 24, 2026. REUTERS

Adding to the volatility, a notorious gang leader known as “Izo 2” threatened to execute the remaining captives if police attempted to reclaim Kenscoff. 

The ultimatum drew swift condemnation and horror from diplomats in the United States, Panama, and Colombia. 

Luis Ruiz Massieu, the U.N. special envoy to Haiti, noted that the massacre has sparked a “new wave of public indignation” both locally and internationally.

In response, Haitian authorities have deployed a joint gang-suppression force of national police and military personnel to reinforce security in both the capital and the embattled hills of Kenscoff.

With Post wires