Port-au-Prince – An American Christian aid organization said on Sunday (10/17) that a group of its missionaries had been kidnapped in Haiti.
The incident indicates that criminal gangs in the Caribbean country are growing bolder amid a political and economic crisis.
The group of missionaries were in Haiti to visit an orphanage when their bus was hijacked outside the capital Port-au-Prince on Saturday.
Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries said he had no information on who was behind the kidnapping or where they took the group, which consists of 16 Americans and one Canadian.
“We are looking for God’s direction to act, and the authorities are looking for ways to help,” they said in a statement.
A Haitian police spokesperson said they had no information about the incident.
The US State Department said it was aware of the report. US embassies do not normally disclose information about nationals due to privacy regulations.
The Canadian government said it was working with authorities and local groups to gather more information.
Security experts believe a gang called the 400 Mawozo was involved in the kidnapping of the missionaries.
The group dominates the region of Croix-des-Bouquets, east of Port-au-Prince, and is close to where missionaries were reportedly kidnapped.
400 Mawozo are suspected of being involved in the kidnapping of a group of priests and nuns, including French nationals, in April in the same area.
US Congressman Adam Kinzinger, a Republican from Illinois, told CNN that the United States should find the missionaries and seek to negotiate their release without paying ransom, or should use the military or police to guarantee their freedom.
“We need to know where they are and see if negotiations without paying a ransom are possible. Or do whatever we need to do, with the military or the police,” said Kinzinger, who sits on the foreign affairs committee. from the room.
Kidnappings have been on the rise for months in Haiti as the impoverished country’s economy deteriorates, although kidnappings of foreigners are relatively rare.
The victims usually come from the Haitian middle class, such as teachers, priests, civil servants, small business owners, who cannot afford bodyguards but can demand ransom.
In September, Haitian migrants invaded the US-Mexico border in hopes of finding economic opportunities, but 7,000 of them were deported by US authorities. (ant / rif)
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