Gang warlord's home bombed by Haiti security forces as police target strongholds

Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald on Jan 16, 2026

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Security forces in Haiti have destroyed at least two homes belonging to feared warlord Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier, after a drone strike targeted his Delmas 6 stronghold.

A Haitian government source confirmed to the Miami Herald that the incident occurred Wednesday and the homes were located next to each other. Chérizier’s whereabouts currently remain unknown.

Video footage shared online Wednesday showed a powerful explosion destroying a large building, with gray smoke billowing into the air as people circled below. Local media reported that the building belonged to Chérizier, a key member of the powerful Viv Ansanm gang coalition.

The Haiti National Police have not issued an official statement on the strike on the gang leader’s homes. However, in a post published afterward, authorities said specialized police units, along with members of the Armed Forces of Haiti and private military contractors, were carrying out an operation in Delmas 6, long considered part of Chérizier’s fiefdom.

Since December, Haitian security forces — including Kenyan police deployed as part of the newly formed Gang Suppression Force and contractors employed by Erik Prince, the American private military contractor — have intensified operations in the capital against armed groups and their leaders. While explosive aerial strikes target gang positions, police units move in on the ground, bulldozing homes and using bullhorns to warn residents of upcoming operations.

The operations have led to the seizure of at least 33 firearms, including automatic rifles, and more than 12,200 rounds of ammunition, police said. They’ve also made several arrests while several people have been killed.

As a result, several members of Viv Ansanm, including leaders, have been forced to abandon their territories near downtown Port-au-Prince and retreat to other areas.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has warned that continued clashes are driving mass displacement across Port-au-Prince.

According to the International Organization for Migration, approximately 6,000 people have been displaced since Jan. 6. Most sought shelter with host families, while others moved into two displacement sites.

The escalating violence has significantly affected humanitarian programs in the capital, where only 10% of health facilities are fully operational, while approximately 4.9 million people in Haiti need emergency health assistance, Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, said this week .

He noted that internal displacement linked to violence has doubled in the past year and has now reached more than 1.4 million people — or 12% of the population of Haiti.

“This year, 6.4 million people in Haiti — or more than half of the population— need humanitarian aid,” Dujarric said. “We and our partners are appealing for $880 million to help the 4.2 million of the most vulnerable Haitians.”

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