Haitians suffering gang violence are desperate after Kenyan court blocks police force deployment

By DÁNICA COTO and EVENS SANON
Associated Press

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — People across Haiti are wondering what awaits them after a court in Kenya blocked the deployment of a U.N.-backed police force to help fight gangs in the troubled Caribbean country. Uncertainty and fear have been spreading since Friday’s ruling, with violence reaching new records as gangs tighten their grip on Haiti’s capital and beyond. Kenyan President William Ruto has said he would appeal the ruling. It’s unclear how long that might take and whether other countries who pledged to send smaller forces to boost the multi-national mission would consider going at it alone. Among those who planned to send forces were the Bahamas, Jamaica, Belize, Burundi, Chad and Senegal.