Haitian government forces recapture national stadium after two years of gang takeover

In Haiti, where armed criminal organizations are active, control of the national stadium, which the gang had controlled for over two years, was returned to government forces.

According to AFP, Haitian government forces announced in a statement on the 13th (local time) that they had recaptured the Silvio Cator National Stadium with a private security group and had handed over security there to Salvadoran soldiers.

Haiti, which has not held an election since 2016, lost government functions after the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, leading to the operation of numerous gangs, resulting in severe security instability.

However, last month, an armed gang attacked the UN-supported Gang Suppression Force (GSF), and in the process, four Salvadoran soldiers belonging to the GSP went missing. About 2,000 Salvadoran soldiers were dispatched to Haiti, and private mercenaries also joined in, gradually narrowing the gang's position.

On this day, El Salvador's President Nayib Bquele emphasized through

The Silvio Cator National Stadium, which can accommodate about 10,000 people, fell into the hands of gangsters in 2024. Because of this, the Haiti national soccer team had to play its home match for the 2026 North and Central America World Cup qualifiers in Curaçao instead of its home country.

There are signs of change in Haiti, with gang leaders being killed one after another after the Salvadoran military, accustomed to fighting gangs, was dispatched.

On the 1st, Wilson Joseph, the leader of the notorious Haitian gang '400 Mauzo', sent a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, requesting mediation between the two sides.