President William Ruto on Saturday, September 21, visited Kenyan police officers in troubled Haiti and shared a video of his visit.
Ruto who left the country on Friday, September 20, for the UN General Assembly in New York and made a stop in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince.
The Head of State who joined the officers in worship, breaking into song and prayers.
The President shared a clip of his interaction with the Kenyan police officers, showing him worshiping with them during his brief stopover at Port-au-Prince.
Ruto briefed on the Haiti mission
Kenya was the first country to deploy police to war-torn Haiti as gang violence peaked with several gangs controlling vast sections of the Caribbean nation, including parts of the capital.
The president was briefed on how the mission to restore security in Haiti is progressing as well as the challenges experienced by the MSS Mission, led by Commander Godfrey Otunge.
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He conveyed that Kenya has no problem having the mission transition to a fully U.N. Peacekeeping mission.
"On the suggestion to transit this into a fully U.N. Peacekeeping mission, we have absolutely no problem with it if that is the direction the U.N. security council wants to take," Ruto affirmed on Saturday shortly after arriving in Port-au-Prince.
Following a surge in gang violence with the resultant impacts on security and displacement of people, Kenya deployed its officers under a UN-backed Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission.
The MSSs mandate which expires in October this year is set to be renewed for another year by the UN Security Council.
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With the help of Kenyan police, the Haitian government has recorded several gains including taking control of key government installations that gangs had seized.
Kenyan police officers support Haiti government to reclaim key government installations
The officers, who are part of the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, managed on Wednesday, July 17, to recapture the Auorite Portuaire Nationale (APN) after a fierce gun battle that saw gangs surrender.
The port which is located in Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital was seized by gangs on March 6, 2024.
With the port back in the hands of the government, food, medical and other supplies, including humanitarian aid that had been prevented from entering the troubled Caribbean nation could now come in.