Haiti gang kidnaps American missionaries and families

PORT-AU-PRINCE • As many as 17 American Christian missionaries and their families, including children, have been kidnapped by gang members in Haiti's capital of Port-au-Prince, according to US media reports.

The kidnapping last Saturday happened after the missionaries left an orphanage in the crisis-engulfed Caribbean nation, the New York Times said.

The Washington Post reported an audio recording from the Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries as saying men, women and children associated with the group were being held by an armed gang.

"The mission field director and the American embassy are working to see what can be done," the audio was quoted as saying.

"Pray that the gang members will come to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ."

The victims included 14 adults and three minors, CNN said, citing an unnamed source in Haiti's security forces.

The group members were travelling to Titanyen after visiting the orphanage in the Croix des Bouquets area, CNN said.

The Times, citing local officials, said the missionaries were taken from a bus that was heading to the airport to drop off some members of the group before continuing to another destination in Haiti.

A spokesman for the US State Department told Reuters it was aware of the reports, but did not give details. "The welfare and safety of US citizens abroad is one of the highest priorities of the Department of State," the spokesman added.

A spokesman for the Haitian police said she was seeking information on the issue. Christian Aid Ministries did not respond to a request for comment.

A surge in gang violence in Haiti has displaced thousands of people and hampered economic activity in the poorest country in the Americas. Violence spiralled after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July and an earthquake in August which killed more than 2,000 people.

REUTERS