The Gran Grif gang — one of the largest and most powerful gangs in Artibonite1UN Security Council, ‘Luckson Elan,’ 27 September 2024 — has been expanding its zone of influence in recent years and has increasingly been involved in violence, with a nearly four times increase in incidents involving the gang between 2022 and 2023 (see graph below). The violence reached a peak on 3 October when Gran Grif attacked residents in Pont-Sondé, killing at least 115 people2Evens Sanon and Pierre-Richard Luxama, ‘The death toll in a gang attack on a small Haitian town rises to 115,’ Associated Press, 10 October 2024 in the deadliest incident in Artibonite since ACLED began collecting data for Haiti in 2018. The attack appears to be in retaliation against residents, who the gang accuses of allying with a local group known as Coalition des Révolutionnaires pour Sauver l’Artibonite, or the Jean Denis Coalition.3Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains (RNDDH), ‘Massacre au Pont-Sondé: Le RNDDH exige des autorités étatiques la protection immédiate de la population haïtienne,’ 4 October 2024 While Gran Grif has conducted mass attacks on civilians before, including for alleged collaboration with state-allied groups, this massacre represents the gang’s largest assault.
After the Ouest department, Artibonite is the second-hardest hit by gang violence, with Gran Grif dominating the landscape and leading the majority of violent incidents in recent years. Gran Grif has been responsible for at least 80% of civilian targeting fatalities in the department since 2022 — 224 out of the 277 civilian deaths reported in the department (see graph below). Since 2022, gang violence has surged, and Gran Grif has notably targeted transportation workers and other civilians along major roads to extort them, plundered agricultural resources, and resorted to brutal violence against civilians to assert its authority over areas under its control.4Romain Le Cour Grandmaison, Ana Paula Oliveira, and Matt Herbert, ‘Haiti’s gang crisis and international responses,’ Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, February 2024, pp.9-10 In the absence of effective state security services, civilians have increasingly turned to vigilantism, leading to the creation of the Jean Denis Coalition to counter Gran Grif’s activities.5UN Security Council, ‘Final report of the Panel of Experts on Haiti submitted pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022),’ 15 September 2024
Rumors about the likelihood of a massacre in Pont-Sondé were circulating months before the attack, according to civil society organizations, and the Gran Grif leader announced the planned incursion a day before. Nonetheless, security forces only deployed 24 hours after the massacre. Security forces continue to struggle to contain gang activities despite the deployment of the Kenya-led Multilateral Security Support Mission, which reportedly remains underfunded.6Christopher Shell, ‘Can the International Community Do More to Help Haiti?,’ Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 12 September 2024
As part of Gran Grif’s expanding influence, the gang has increasingly challenged state forces, including during an attempted attack on the Pat-Chwal sub-police station in Pont-Sondé in July 2024 that was thwarted by police, with support from vigilantes. Concerns are growing over the potential for further violence, as Gran Grif has reportedly issued repeated threats against the local population, accusing them of organizing resistance against the gang.7X @Ameriqueinfo7, 9 October 2024
Visuals produced by Ana Marco.
