PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AFP) — Armed gangs have swept through neighbourhoods north of Haiti’s capital, forcing more than 5,000 to leave their homes since Sunday, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said.

Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas, has for years been plagued by instability as powerful gangs carry out rampant killings, rapes, looting and kidnappings.

The security crisis worsened in early 2024, when gangs launched a wave of violence that forced the country’s unelected prime minister to resign.