A Kenyan officer deployed to Haiti under the UN-backed multinational force is feared dead after a violent gang ambush in the capital, Port-au-Prince. While official confirmation is still pending, disturbing images circulating online show a body in Kenyan police uniform lying motionless, with local sources suggesting the officer was killed in action.
This tragic incident raises urgent questions about Africa’s increasing role in international peacekeeping missions—especially in contexts as unstable and dangerous as Haiti. While Kenya’s involvement has been framed as a gesture of global solidarity, critics argue that Kenyan officers are being sent into a hornet’s nest with little preparation, no linguistic training, and unclear political mandates.
Why is Kenya risking lives in a Caribbean conflict it did not create? Could this deployment reflect political deals made behind closed doors, more than a commitment to justice and peace? And what protections are in place for the officers who are now on the frontlines of a brutal gang war far from home? As this mission unfolds, Kenya must answer not just to the UN—but to its own citizens.
