Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby announced on Monday the deployment of 1,500 troops to Haiti as part of the new UN-supervised Gang Repression Force (FRG). The decision raises as much hope as it does questions, as the Haitian capital and large parts of the Artibonite and Centre departments are being strangled by criminal groups.
Before the Chadian National Assembly, it was through the voice of its president, Ali Kolotou Tchaïmi, that head of state Mahamat Idriss Déby officially confirmed the dispatch of two full battalions to Haiti. That means 1,500 soldiers, 400 of whom are already deployed on the ground, according to his remarks reported by AFP.
“The state will contribute to this force with two battalions of 750 members each,” he announced. This announcement concretizes and amplifies the initial commitment made on March 24, when N’Djamena had promised 750 security force members. A second battalion of the same size will thus complete the deployment.
The Chadian president did not fail to recall his country’s experience with international coalitions: fighting Boko Haram, missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Cameroon, as well as a leading role within the G5 Sahel. This served to justify the logistical and operational capability of his troops, far from their Sahelian bases.
To understand the urgency of this deployment, one must grasp the abyss into which Haiti has been sinking for years. Murders, rapes, looting, kidnappings: criminal gangs rule there as masters. The situation has deteriorated sharply over the past two years, to the point where almost all of Port-au-Prince has escaped state control.
Armed groups control approximately 90% of the capital. They have even extended their influence beyond the metropolitan area. Communes such as Cité Soleil, Croix-des-Bouquets, Tabarre, Martissant, and Carrefour have become impregnable strongholds, while areas previously spared, such as Pétion-Ville or the heights of the capital, regularly suffer deadly incursions.
The Gang Repression Force (FRG) is supposed to change the situation. The successor to the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), it can count up to 5,500 international police officers and soldiers. Its objective: to support the Haitian National Police (HNP), which is largely overwhelmed and poorly equipped, in its counterinsurgency operations.
However, the start has been slow. And this is where the problem lies. While President Déby assures that 400 Chadian soldiers are already operational in Haiti, no images, no joint statement with Haitian authorities or the UN have confirmed their presence on the ground.
In Port-au-Prince, questions are pouring in: “If they are already there, what are they doing? What is the FRG waiting for to engage while the gangs continue to spread terror?” These are legitimate questions that the weary and disillusioned population asks itself daily, seeing illegal checkpoints and deadly attacks multiply.
Fragile progress against adaptive gangs, according to the UN
Encouraging signs do exist, however. According to a recent report by experts mandated by the UN Security Council, “law enforcement operations in Haiti have succeeded in slowing the expansion of gangs in the capital.” This achievement is nonetheless described as “fragile,” as criminal groups have already adjusted their tactics.
Between March 2025 and mid-January 2026, gang-related violence and counterinsurgency operations have killed more than 5,500 people in Haiti, according to a new report from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights published in March.
President Mahamat Idriss Déby’s announcement is, on paper, excellent news for Haiti. A reinforcement of 1,500 experienced soldiers, integrated into a UN mission, could tip the balance of power against the gangs. However, it remains necessary that these troops actually arrive and that they have rules of engagement adapted to the reality on the ground.
