2022 Cabaret attack

Overview

Between November 29 and 30, 2022, at least 20 people were killed by armed gangs in the town of Cabaret, a suburb of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince. The attack was carried out by members of two gangs, the Base 5 Secondes gang and the Canaan gang, who targeted civilians in the town overnight.

Context

Cabaret's violence occurred amid a broader crisis of gang activity in Haiti that has been ongoing since the mid-2010s and was significantly worsened following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. While most gang violence in this period centered on Port-au-Prince, it periodically spread to nearby localities, including Cabaret. Prior to the November 2022 attack, the mayor of Cabaret had stated that police, aided by residents, had succeeded in expelling gang members from the town; civilians were also appointed as guards to assist police in maintaining this arrangement.

The town of Cabaret and its surrounding villages held strategic importance for the gangs due to the presence of the Lafiteau Port, the surrounding industrial area, and a highway connection to Port-au-Prince. Violence in the area prior to the expulsions had already left the port unable to operate, and civilians were reportedly targeted by extrajudicial killings carried out by gang members during that period.

The Attack

The Base 5 Secondes and Canaan gangs, both of which had previously been removed from Cabaret through anti-gang efforts by local police, returned to the town on the night between November 29 and 30, 2022, and attacked civilians. The acting mayor of Cabaret, Joseph Jeanson Guillaume, described the gangs as having acted with "unparalleled cruelty." The morning following the attack, the bodies of twelve civilians were discovered, and dozens of homes had been set on fire. As further casualties were found, the death toll rose to more than 20.

Aftermath

Following the attack, acting mayor Guillaume called on Haiti's National Police to intervene against the gangs responsible.