Gangs attack a neighborhood in Haiti that's home to the country's elite

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Heavily armed gangs in Haiti have attacked a neighborhood that's home to most of the country's elite and had been largely untouched by criminals, and police have demanded help repelling the assault that has killed at least 40 people.

“It’s been eight days since Kenscoff has been under attack,” Mayor Jean Massillon told The Associated Press on Monday. He blamed the attack on the Viv Ansanm gang coalition, with gunmen going home to home and indiscriminately opening fire.

“As we speak, they have surrounded the area,” Massillon said as he called for reinforcements.

The dead include pastors, teachers and children, although the number is expected to be higher because authorities haven’t been able to reach certain parts of the neighborhood, which is home to many politicians and business leaders.

Many victims are working-class people who tend crops on the outskirts of the neighborhood in the foothills of a mountain range.

Gangs already control 85% of Port-au-Prince, and the United Nations secretary-general warned last month they could overrun the capital.

The assault on Kenscoff occurred days after the government and police warned about imminent attacks in the capital, but the warnings did not say where they might occur.

Jean Bertho Valmo, a 45-year-old farmer who fled Kenscoff, told the AP that 12 members of one family were among the dead.

He said he woke to another round of gunfire before dawn Monday. He and his family sought shelter in the yard of the mayor’s office along with dozens of others.

“There is not enough water and food for everyone,” he said, and lamented the loss of his crops including cabbage, carrots and broccoli.

“I invested everything I had in them,” Valmo said. “The police, the government need to put a stop to this.”

The attack on Kenscoff that began Jan. 27 has left more than 1,660 people homeless, according to the International Organization for Migration on Monday.

Overall, gang violence has left more than 1 million people homeless across Haiti in recent years.

On Friday, one police union said the attack on Kenscoff “could have been avoided if police had good equipment” including a helicopter and an all-terrain vehicle, as well as funds to gather intelligence.

“Despite these bad conditions, our policemen are making tireless sacrifices, but we cannot tolerate the negligence of the authorities on what must be done to protect their lives and the safety of the population,” the union, SPNH-17, said in a statement.

Associated Press writer Dánica Coto in San Juan, Puerto Rico contributed.

People displaced by armed gang attacks take refuge in the town hall of the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025.(AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

People line up to receive food at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

A soldier carries out an anti-gang operation in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

People displaced by armed gang attacks take refuge at the town hall of the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

A soldier carries out an anti-gang operation in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

People line up to receive food at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Police officers stand guard during an anti-gang operation in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

NEW YORK (AP) — Kamala Harris “wrote off rural America" during the 2024 presidential campaign and failed to attack Donald Trump with sufficient “negative firepower," according to a long-awaited post-election autopsy released on Thursday by the Democratic National Committee.

The committee's chair, Ken Martin, shared the 192-page report only after facing intense internal pressure from frustrated Democratic operatives concerned with his leadership. Martin had originally promised to release the autopsy, only to keep it under wraps for months because he was concerned it would be a distraction ahead of the midterms as Democrats mobilize to take back control of Congress.

On Tuesday, Martin apologized for his handling of the situation and conceded that the report was withheld because it “was not ready for primetime."

Although the autopsy criticizes Democrats' focus on “identity politics,” it sidesteps some of the most controversial elements of the 2024 campaign. The report does not address former President Joe Biden’s decision to seek reelection, the rushed selection of Harris to replace him on the ticket or the party's acrimonious divide over the war in Gaza.

“I am not proud of this product; it does not meet my standards, and it won’t meet your standards,” Martin wrote in an essay on Substack on Thursday. “I don’t endorse what’s in this report, or what’s left out of it. I could not in good faith put the DNC’s stamp of approval on it. But transparency is paramount.”

A spokesperson for Harris did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The initial reaction from Democratic operatives was a mix of bafflement and anger over Martin's handling of the situation.

“Why not say this in 2024, or bring in more people to finish it, instead of turning this into the dumbest media cycle for 7-8 months?” Democratic strategist Steve Schale wrote on social media.

The postelection report, which was authored by Democratic consultant Paul Rivera, calls for “a renewed focus on the voters of Middle America and the South, who have come to believe they are not included in the Democratic vision of a stronger and more dynamic America for everyone.”

“Millions of Americans are suffering from poor access to healthcare, manufacturing and job losses, and a failing infrastructure, yet continue to be persuaded to vote against their best interests because they do not see themselves reflected in the America of the Democratic Party,” the report says.

The autopsy points to a reduction in support and training for Democratic state parties, voter registration shifts and “a persistent inability or unwillingness to listen to all voters.”

Thursday's release comes as Martin confronts a crisis of confidence among party officials who are increasingly concerned about the health of their political machine barely a year into his term. Some Democratic operatives have had informal discussions about recruiting a new chair, even though most believe that Martin’s job wasn't in serious jeopardy ahead of the midterm elections.

The report found that Harris and her allies failed to focus enough on Trump's negatives, especially his felony convictions. This was part of a broader criticism that Democrats' messaging is too focused on reason and winning arguments, “even in cycles when the electorate is defined by rage.”

“There was a decision in the 2024 Democratic leadership not to engage in negative advertising at the scale required,” the report states. “The Trump campaign and supportive Super PACs went full throttle against Vice President Harris, but there was not sufficient or similar negative firepower directed at Trump by Democrats.”

The report continues: “It was essential to prosecute a more effective case as to why Trump should have been disqualified from ever again taking office. The grounds were there, but the messaging did not make the case.”

Trump's attack on Harris' transgender policies were cited as a key contrast.

Specifically, the report suggested the Democratic nominee was “boxed” in by the Trump campaign's “very effective” ad that highlighted Harris' previous statement of support for taxpayer-funded gender-affirming surgeries for prison inmates.

Democratic pollsters believed that “if the Vice President would not change her position – and she did not – then there was nothing which would have worked as a response," the report said.

The report criticized Harris' outreach to key segments of America while condemning the party's focus on “identity politics.”

“Harris wrote off rural America, assuming urban/suburban margins would compensate. The math doesn’t work,” the report says. “You can’t lose rural areas by overwhelming margins and make it up elsewhere when rural voters are a significant share of the electorate. If Democrats are to reclaim leadership in the Heartland or the South, candidates must perform well in rural turf. Show up, listen, and then do it again.”

The report also references Democrats' underperformance with male voters of color.

“Male voters require direct engagement. The gender gap can be narrowed. Deploy male messengers, address economic concerns, and don’t assume identity politics will hold male voters of color,” it says.

President Donald Trump speaks during an event about loosening a federal refrigerant rule, in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Former Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a fireside chat on Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

FILE - Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at DNC headquarters, Jan. 12, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert, File)