The continually delayed deployment of a Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission has raised concerns over how prepared the UN-approved and US-bankrolled force will be to face the security crisis in Haiti. An analysis from Insight Crime suggests the gangs have been using the extra time to "fortify what could be a fierce response." A first contingent of about 200 Kenyan police officers was expected to land in the capital, Port-au-Prince, in late May, but its arrival was postponed after an advance delegation from Kenya identified a shortage of equipment and infrastructure. In an interview with the BBC, Kenyan President William Ruto said the deployment of 2,500 troops, including 1,000 Kenyan police officers, will now start mid-June.

But little is known on the rules of engagement and strategy to be put in place to fight the gangs, who control most of the capital—even whether the force will directly engage with the armed groups alongside the Haitian National Police. In the meantime, the gangs have not let up, killing three missionaries (including an American couple), attacking more police stations, and trying to seize control of the Gressier commune in Port-au-Prince. They have also posted direct threats to the MSS force and paraded their heavy weaponry on social media. Amid reports of a large inventory of Colombian weapons being sold to Haitian gangs, some experts worry that the firepower of the gangs has been underestimated.

From The New Humanitarian, May 31