Port-au-Prince – At least 47 people were killed in a massacre carried out during the night of August 23–24 in Kenscoff, a hilltop town overlooking Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital. At least 22 people were wounded in the attack, which was carried out by one of the criminal gangs that have been terrorizing the country. The gunmen also set fire to dozens of homes.
Among the buildings destroyed by the flames was a place of worship belonging to the Church of the Ark of the New Covenant, located in the center of the town near the municipal cemetery. Several homes near the town hall and police station were also set ablaze. Animals, including horses, were also killed in the attack.
According to eyewitness accounts, the gunmen reportedly took several hostages before withdrawing. Several families have fled Kenscoff to escape the violence.
The Church of the Ark of the New Covenant, also known as the Ark of the Covenant, is an evangelical Christian church founded in 1974 and led by Bishop Renelus Maxime. It has approximately 535 members and serves as the main community within a network of about 14 congregations in rural areas of Haiti. The organization also works with humanitarian groups, including Chances for Children, on food assistance programs, mobile medical clinics, pastoral training and infrastructure renovation.
Since the beginning of 2025, Kenscoff has been the scene of repeated attacks by criminal gangs, particularly the Viv Ansanm coalition. The Church of the Ark of the New Covenant had offered shelter to displaced people in the area before being destroyed in the August 24 attack, the latest in a series of violent incidents affecting several municipalities in the Port-au-Prince area.
The worsening insecurity in Haiti, where around 1.5 million people are internally displaced, is also threatening the holding of the first round of presidential and legislative elections, as well as the constitutional referendum, scheduled for December 13.
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