The administration of United States President Joe Biden has called for the rapid deployment of a Kenyan-led security force to Haiti following the killing of three missionaries working with a US group in the violence-hit Caribbean country.
The appeal on Friday came shortly after the non-profit Missions in Haiti Inc announced that three of its missionaries were fatally shot by armed gunmen on Thursday night in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince.
The deaths are the latest in months of spiralling violence in Port-au-Prince, which remains largely under the control of powerful armed groups that have unleashed a wave of deadly attacks across the city.
They also came as Kenyan President William Ruto wrapped up a visit to Washington, DC, where he met Biden and other senior US leaders to discuss a range of issues, including the long-stalled Haiti deployment.
“The security situation in Haiti cannot wait,” a National Security Council spokesperson said on Friday, adding that Biden had pledged to support the “expedited deployment” of the Kenya-led force in talks with Ruto on Thursday.
“Our hearts go out to the families of those killed as they experience unimaginable grief,” the spokesperson added, referring to the missionaries.
Missouri State Representative Ben Baker on Friday identified his daughter, Natalie Lloyd, and son-in-law, Davy Lloyd, as being among those killed.
The pair had been working as full-time missionaries in the country, and Davy Lloyd was the son of Missions in Haiti Inc’s founders, David and Alicia Lloyd, who started the organisation in 2000.
The identity of the third person killed has not been released.
The United Nations and other humanitarian organisations have been calling for more support for the citizens of Haiti amid years of gang violence and political instability, which worsened after the 2021 killing of President Jovenel Moise.
The most recent wave of unrest, which kicked off in February with gang attacks on police…
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