Haiti Ranked No. 5 on IRC's 2026 Emergency Watch List Amid Rising Drone Deaths, Gang Violence
The International Rescue Committee reports a 120% increase in drone attacks and estimates more than 1,200 civilians killed this year, according to a single-source account.
Haiti has climbed to No. 5 on the International Rescue Committee's 2026 emergency watch list, which ranks the top 20 countries facing the world's most severe humanitarian crises, according to a report published by myspiritfm.com. The country reportedly rose from ninth place in 2023 to fifth in 2026; Sudan tops the list. The figures could not be independently verified.
Ciarán Donnelly, senior vice president for crisis response, recovery, and development at the IRC, told 'EWTN News Nightly' on July 15 that 'Haiti is in the grip of an overwhelming humanitarian crisis.' He said more than 1,200 civilians are estimated to have been killed in drone attacks this year, including 17 children, amid a reported 120% increase in such attacks. Donnelly described the weapons as 'small, cheap, easier-to-operate quadcopter-type drones' fitted with explosives and used as improvised explosive devices, some detonating in public areas.
He said the situation is particularly acute in Port-au-Prince, where gangs reportedly control about 90% of the capital's territory. According to Donnelly, about half of Haiti's population of roughly 6.4 million people need humanitarian assistance, with limited access to healthcare and a significant risk of communicable diseases amid displacement.