Bundeswehr wants to support UN mission in Haiti

The Bundeswehr wants to support the UN mission in the Caribbean republic of Haiti, which is shaken by poverty and gang violence. The German armed forces would provide air transport capacity "in the short term" to help with the transfer of equipment and material, the Federal Ministry of Defense said.

The transport operation should take place “in the next few weeks”. With the air transport capacities, the Bundeswehr will support those countries that provide troops on site for the UN mission in Haiti - these include Kenya, Chad, Mongolia, Bangladesh, Guatemala and Ivory Coast. In this way, the Bundeswehr is making an important contribution to the rapid stabilization of the security situation in the country in a crucial phase of the mission's growth, it said.

Murders, kidnappings, rapes

The UN Support Mission for Haiti (UNSOH) and the anti-gang unit "Gang Suppression Force" (GSF) were mandated by the UN Security Council last year at the initiative of the USA. The aim is to fight criminal gangs that control large parts of Haiti.

Haiti is the poorest country on the American continent. According to a report published by UN experts in April, criminal gangs now control 90 percent of the country. They commit murders, kidnappings and rapes and force children to fight for them. In addition, almost half of Haiti's eleven million inhabitants do not have a secure food supply.