Daily life in Haiti remains marked by gang insecurity: kidnappings are common in the country and mainly in Port-au-Prince. It is in this very tense security context that on Tuesday, three of the eight Turkish citizens who have been held hostage for almost a month were released.
With our correspondent in Port-au-Prince, Amelie Baron
They are the three young women of the group of eight Turkish nationals kidnapped while traveling by bus from Santo Domingo to Port-au-Prince. It was a representative of the transport company who confirmed their release. They have been ” released this weekend for health reasons, because they were sick “.
Hijacked vehicle
On May 8, the powerful “400 Mawozo” gang hijacked the vehicle containing a total of twelve people, including these young Turks, aged between 20 and 26. The two employees of the bus company, the Haitian hostess and the Dominican driver had been released less than a week after their abduction. The other two passengers, Haitian citizens, were subsequently taken after their families paid a ransom, the amount of which has not been made public. Today, the kidnappers therefore still have the five young Turkish men in their hands.
Terror of kidnappings
For nearly two years already, Haiti has been living in this terror kidnappings and this phenomenon is experiencing a rampant upsurge. For the month of May alone, the UN has recorded at least 200 kidnappings across the country, mainly in the capital.
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