40 Haitian Migrants Die After Voodoo Ritual Sets Boat on Fire

_{Photo: Image is only for representation purpose}

At least 40 migrants have died after a boat they were traveling in caught fire off the northern coast of Haiti, a UN agency reported on Friday. According to police, the explosion was sparked by a voodoo ritual gone wrong.

The UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM) stated that the Haitian Coast Guard rescued 41 survivors, 11 of whom were hospitalized, some for burns. The fire started when a passenger lit a candle to begin a voodoo ritual, said police spokesperson Arold Jean.

Survivors informed local media that the voodoo ceremony was intended to bring luck and help the boat avoid interception by the coast guard.

"This devastating event highlights the risks faced by children, women, and men migrating through irregular routes," said Gregoire Goodstein, IOM's chief of mission in the country.

The boat, carrying more than 80 people, had departed from the port of Labadee on Wednesday en route to the Turks and Caicos Islands, a 150-mile (240-kilometer) journey, according to the IOM, citing Haiti's National Office for Migration.

"The search continues with the aim of finding other survivors," said Jean, adding that an investigation had been opened to "identify and dismantle the networks that organize these clandestine voyages."

Migration from Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas, has surged in recent months as thousands flee escalating violence from criminal gangs that control vast territories. The gangs have attacked prisons, destroyed police stations, and invaded the main airport, weakening the government's hold on the country.

"Haiti's socioeconomic situation is in agony," Goodstein said. "The extreme violence over the past months has only driven Haitians to more desperate measures."

Hundreds of police officers from Kenya have been deployed in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, as part of an international effort to bring stability to a country plagued by political, social, and economic chaos. Newly named Prime Minister Gary Conille, a former UN official, has welcomed the Kenyan contingent and vowed to launch a police operation against the gangs.

Criminal groups control 80 percent of the capital city, with residents facing threats of murder, rape, and kidnapping for ransom.

As emigration increases, Haitian Coast Guard units in the north have observed a rising number of boat departures, according to the IOM. Countries including the United States, the Bahamas, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Jamaica report intercepting a growing number of boats originating from Haiti.

More than 86,000 migrants have been forcibly returned to Haiti by neighboring countries this year, the IOM reported. The country currently has nearly 600,000 internally displaced people, a 60 percent increase since March, according to UN figures.

#trending #latest #headlines #topstories #globalUpdate #dxbnewsnetwork #dxbnews #dxbdnn #dxbnewsnetworkdnn newschanneldubai #bestnewschannelUAE #bestnewschannelabudhabi #bestnewschannelajman #bestnewschannelofdubai #popularnewschanneldubai #HaitiCrisis #MigrantTragedy #VoodooRitual #MigrationRisks #HaitianMigrants #HumanitarianCrisis #IOM #ForcedMigration #CaribbeanMigration #HaitianCoastGuard #HaitiViolence #InternallyDisplaced #GlobalMigration #KenyanPolice #HaitiNews #RefugeeCrisis #PoliticalInstability #HumanRights #EmergencyResponse

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, visited AI Singapore, a program dedicated to enhancing Singapore's artificial intellig...Read More.

Discussions in Doha, which wrapped up on Monday, involved Mossad chief David Barnea, CIA director Bill Burns, and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman...Read More.