Gang coalition unleashes violent new attack on farming community in Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A powerful gang coalition attacked a once peaceful farming community nestled in the hills above Haiti’s capital, killing multiple people, an official told The Associated Press on Monday.

Kenscoff Mayor Jean Massillon said armed men raided the community late Sunday, setting fire to homes and killing residents.

“It is still impossible to establish a definitive death toll due to access difficulties and communication problems,” he said.

Wails filled the air in Kenscoff as survivors found the bodies of friends and family strewn on the streets early Monday.

“They killed my son!” one woman kept yelling as people nearby tried to comfort her.

One man flung himself on the side of the road, head on his right arm as he cried on the ground. Nearby, people picked up the bodies of those killed, some wrapped in blood-spattered sheets.

Robert Jean recalled how he heard shooting before dawn and tried to rouse people from their sleep to escape being killed. He said he was frantically looking for his brother, who was killed: “I was calling to see if everyone was safe. I could not find my brother.”

Another Kenscoff resident blamed the government for the killings.

“If only we had a good police force that would have placed an armored truck here, what happened here would have been prevented,” said Verti Enold-Saint as he lifted a sheet over the body of his brother-in-law.

Farmer Mathurin Pierre, 41, told AP that he lost 14 loved ones and that an unknown number remain missing.

Massillon blamed the attack on members of Viv Ansanm, which the U.S. government designated as a foreign terrorist organization last year.

“They sowed chaos,” Massillon said.

He said gang members targeted a church and homes including those owned by Dr. Jean “Bill” Pape. He is a renowned doctor who runs a nongovernmental organization in Haiti that helps patients including those with HIV and tuberculosis.

Haiti's Office of Citizen Protection issued a statement decrying the massacre, saying dozens of people, including “numerous” young Haitians, were killed.

Vladimir Paraison, director of Haiti's National Police, visited the area and defended police officers as journalists pressed for answers.

“The police never lowered their arms,” he said. “Look at how many police officers are here; the response is in front of you.”

Jean Fritz Patterson Dorval, head of Port-au-Prince’s prosecutor’s office, also came under pressure. He said there are eight armored vehicles in Kenscoff, adding that “there are technical responses that only the mayor and the police can answer.”

No further details about the attack were available. A spokesperson for the U.N.-backed gang suppression force did not return a message seeking comment.

Haiti’s government issued a statement condemning what it called a heinous criminal attack. “Reinforcements are being deployed,” it said. “Kenscoff will not be abandoned.”

It said that security forces were ordered to pursue those responsible. “The population must remain confident,” the government said, adding that it would not back down.

Gangs control an estimated 70% of Port-au-Prince, the capital, with Viv Ansanm repeatedly targeting nearby Kenscoff.

Gang violence has displaced a record 1.5 million people across Haiti, where more than 3,100 people were reported killed from January to June and another 1,189 injured, according to U.N. statistics.

The attack comes less than a week after the U.S. government deported more than 160 people to the troubled Caribbean country for the first time since the Trump administration won a legal battle to end Temporary Protected Status for some 350,000 Haitians.

Haiti's government has said some of the deportees included TPS holders. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Monday in a statement to the AP that those deported Friday included several gang members with criminal records ranging from assault to drug trafficking.

Haiti is scheduled to hold general elections for the first time in more than a decade on Dec. 13, and it has been registering voters in Port-au-Prince and beyond. Experts have warned it's currently too dangerous to hold elections.

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

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

People mourn over the bodies of people they said were their relatives and killed in a gang attack in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Residents try to flip over a car to block a street as they protest for police intervention after deadly gang attacks in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Blood stains the ground left behind by the victim of a gang attack in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

Women cry at the site where their relatives were killed in a gang attack in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

People gather next to the bodies of people they said were their relatives and were killed in a gang attack in the Kenscoff neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

A boy plays at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Raiders ' young secondary calmed a lot of nerves in the first four games, making plays and showing maybe it won't be an area of concern this season.

Then New England quarterback Drake Maye lit up the defensive backs Sunday in a 45-17 victory over Las Vegas.

And up next? Buffalo's Josh Allen this Sunday and the Los Angeles Rams' Matthew Stafford the following weekend — the two most recent NFL MVPs.

“Obviously, we have a great challenge ahead this week, but that’s the kind of thing we embrace,” Raiders cornerback Darien Porter said. “That’s kind of why you play football, is to compete against the best.”

Porter was one of the few bright spots against the Patriots. Coach Klint Kubiak praised him for losing his job and then playing his way back onto the field in breaking up two Patriots passes, recovering a fumble and making seven tackles.

Whether Porter or Hezekiah Masses starts against the Bills remains to be seen, and Kubiak didn't tip his hand. Masses, drafted in the fifth round this year, got off to a strong start this season, intercepting two passes in Week 2 at the Los Angeles Chargers and another one the following week at New Orleans.

But after the past two weeks, Masses is rated 88th of 104 cornerbacks by Pro Football Focus. While such ups and downs aren't unexpected for a late-round rookie, Masses now will try to return to his earlier form.

“Oh, 100% I can get back to it,” Masses said. “I had some bad games. That would come with it. I'm just learning as I go, and I know the type of player I am.”

And maybe so can the Raiders' secondary regain its early form where seven-year pro Jeremy Chinn and six-year veteran Eric Stokes are considered the old men of the defensive backfield populated with first- and second-year players.

Even with such inexperience, the Raiders through the first four weeks were tied for fourth in interceptions with four and eighth in average passing yards allowed with 202.8 per game.

Then came the game against the Patriots, and Maye did pretty much whatever he pleased in completing 26 of 34 passes for 374 yards and four touchdowns.

“You learn from it and now it’s the past,” Porter said. “Now it’s just time to move forward to the next opportunity.”

That next opportunity is against Allen, the consensus favorite to win his second MVP in three years.

He is the definition of a dual threat, the 6-foot-5, 237-pounder coming off a Monday night victory over the Rams in which Allen passed for 210 yards and rushed for 121.

Defensive backs are forced to cover longer because of Allen's ability to use his feet, also mindful they might have to tackle him if he takes off and reaches the defense's second level.

“He’s an elite athlete, elite thrower, great instincts to know when to run,” Kubiak said. "Definitely between (running back James) Cook and their quarterback, those are two guys that can really hurt you with their legs.”

Cook has rushed for more than 100 yards in three of the past four weeks, but Allen is the one who drives the Bills' offense and seemingly wins games by himself when big plays are required late.

The Raiders' secondary will have to play much better than it did at New England to have any chance to effectively defend Allen.

“He can run,” Masses said. “He can make great throws, so he's accurate. He can do it all, so we've got to be on our toes.”

Defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway and wide receiver Jalen Nailor remained in concussion protocol and did not practice Wednesday. Kubiak said he hoped Nailor, who was in the protocol last week and did not play, back at practice Thursday.

No decision has been made on whether wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr., who has not played this season because of a hamstring injury, will he activated off injured reserve. The Raiders have two weeks before taking that step, putting him on season-ending IR or releasing or trading him."

“He’s got to prove to us he’s ready to go play in the NFL game, that his conditioning is there," Kubiak said. "He didn’t have a lot of training camp. He’s coming back from a lot of time off, but he’s worked really hard and he’s put himself in position last week to prove to us this week and maybe next week that he’s ready to go.”

See AP’s full NFL coverage here

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, left, and Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen meet before the coin flip for overtime during the second half of an NFL football game, Monday, Oct. 12, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

New England Patriots wide receiver Kyle Williams (18) catches a touchdown pass against Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Hezekiah Masses (35) during an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

New England Patriots wide receiver Kyle Williams (18) is dragged down by Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Darien Porter (26) after catching a long pass during an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)