Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome has expressed faith in the Haiti peacekeeping mission, to which Kenya will send 1,000 police officers.
During a Friday meeting with Head of Public Service Felix Koskei at the Kenya School of Government, IG Koome expressed confidence that the officers would succeed in their mission and restore order to the violence-stricken Caribbean nation.
The IG emphasized that Kenyan forces have never failed before, citing previous missions in Somalia and South Sudan, as well as the recent deployment to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and that they will prevail in Haiti as well.
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Koskei mirrored IG Koome's remarks, stating that the decision will see the National Police Service (NPS) "serve as the face of the humanitarian mission."
Kenyans have expressed alarm over the deployment following the announcement by Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Dr Alfred Mutua, with many describing the island as a dangerous area requiring international involvement.
President William Ruto, who oversaw the signing of the agreement this month by Haitian Minister Jean Victor Génus and CS Mutua, has endorsed the move, saying it will allow cooperation in areas of mutual interest.
The mission comes at a time when the United Nations chief warned that gang-infested Haiti is falling deeper into carnage and disorder.
Brutal gangs are consolidating their grip on Haiti, with snipers shooting randomly from rooftops and victims being burned alive, prompting vigilante groups to respond with even more brutality.
In a report released on Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that Gang-related violence has continued to increase in intensity and brutality, with gangs expanding their control within and beyond Port-au-Prince.
Guterres added that Sexual violence, including gang rape, continues to be used by gangs to terrorize populations under the control of rival gangs.
