The Gang Suppression Force (GSF) is a new UN‑authorized, multinational security mission for Haiti that replaces and expands the earlier Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission. It has a 12‑month mandate and is meant to field about 5,550 foreign police and military personnel who will work alongside Haitian authorities to dismantle armed gangs, secure key infrastructure, and help ensure humanitarian access.
The force is not a classic UN peacekeeping mission but a UN Security Council–authorized coalition led operationally by Kenya and built from countries that already contribute to the MSS (such as Kenya, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, and others), with additional states expected to join. Funding is to come mainly from voluntary contributions by UN member states; the United States has been one of the largest funders of the predecessor MSS mission and co‑sponsored the resolution creating the GSF, while countries like Canada and others have also pledged financial and logistical support.
In the Haitian context, the “U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations” referred to in the statement are the Haitian gang coalition Viv Ansanm and the gang Gran Grif. On May 2, 2025 the U.S. State Department formally designated both Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs) because of their central role in Haiti’s gang violence and attacks on civilians, Haitian security forces, and international personnel.
Haiti’s transitional government is headed collectively by the Transitional Presidential Council (TPC), which acts as a collegial head of state, and by an acting prime minister who runs the cabinet. As of late 2025/early 2026:
Legally, the TPC was created by governmental decree published in Haiti’s official gazette Le Moniteur on 12 April 2024. The decree gives the Council the powers and duties of the presidency until an elected president is inaugurated or until 7 February 2026, whichever comes first. It is therefore an extra‑constitutional transitional authority created by decree, recognized and supported by CARICOM, the UN, the OAS, and the United States as Haiti’s interim governing body, though some Haitian actors question its constitutional legitimacy.
Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (Conseil Électoral Provisoire, CEP) is the national electoral commission responsible for organizing presidential, parliamentary, and local elections and establishing the legal and technical framework for voting.
The current CEP was created in September 2024 by the transitional authorities after years without an operating electoral body. The Transitional Presidential Council, meeting as Haiti’s interim government, issued a decision and decree establishing the council, which initially named seven of the nine legally required members. Seats are allocated to representatives nominated by various sectors of society (including farmers, journalists, religious groups, unions, human rights groups, women’s organizations, and the Vodou community). After months of negotiation over sectoral nominations, these members were appointed and later sworn in as a provisional body to prepare the first general elections since 2016.
Publicly available U.S. statements describe broad categories of assistance for Haiti’s elections rather than a detailed itemized package. In general, the United States has committed to:
However, as of early 2026, the U.S. government has not publicly released a precise, line‑by‑line description of all election‑related assistance (such as specific amounts for voter registration, logistics, or observation) beyond these general categories.
Haiti’s current electoral timetable, agreed in late 2025, foresees two rounds of general elections in 2026 with key steps before and after:
These dates come from the CEP’s electoral calendar (submitted November 2025 and later published in the official gazette). Haitian authorities and the CEP have stressed that keeping to this timeline depends on improved security and full funding for the electoral process.
Planned election‑security measures rely on a combination of Haitian forces and international missions, but many details are still being worked out. Broadly, security is expected to be maintained through:
UN and Security Council documents state that these forces are meant to work closely with Haitian authorities to create a “safe and stable environment” for elections, but as of early 2026 no publicly available, detailed operational plan (e.g., exact deployment patterns, rules of engagement specific to election days) has been published.