The number of crimes perpetrated by armed gangs in Haiti reached new records, denounced this Monday the representative of the UN Secretary General for the Caribbean country in the Security Council. "Unfortunately, the security situation on the ground continues to deteriorate," Ecuadorian María Isabel Salvador, who hopes the sending of an international intervention force will improve security, told the UN Security Council. "Growing gang violence has thrown the lives of Haitians into chaos and major crimes are rising sharply to new all-time highs," added the representative of Secretary-General António Guterres. The diplomat said that major infractions, including voluntary homicides and kidnappings, registered an unprecedented increase in Haiti, mainly in the western departments and in Artibonito. According to a report presented by Salvador, the UN found that between July 1 and September 30, the Haitian National Police recorded 1,239 homicides, compared to 577 in the same period in 2022. And from July to September, 701 people - including 221 women, 8 girls and 18 boys - were kidnapped, which represents an increase of 244% compared to the same period last year. The UN is also concerned about the deaths perpetrated by self-defense groups that emerged last spring. According to the report, 388 people were lynched between April 24 and September 30 due to their "alleged membership in armed gangs." Faced with this situation, the Security Council gave the green light at the beginning of October for the deployment of a multinational mission under the command of Kenya and outside the UN, to help the Haitian Police. "The recovery of control by the Haitian police is a precondition for holding credible and inclusive elections," Salvador insisted in the Security Council, the AFP news agency reported. There have been no elections in Haiti since 2016 The authorization of the multinational mission by the Security Council "created expectations for millions of Haitians both at home and abroad," Salvador said. "This raises a glimmer of hope to see the light at the end of the tunnel," he added. According to the Security Council resolution, Kenya and the other countries that will participate in this force, whose task is still a bit diffuse, must develop the mission plan