Kenya's Final 150 MSS Officers Depart Haiti; 22-Month Multinational Security Mission Formally Ends

On April 28, 2026, the last 150 Kenyan National Police officers departed Haiti, formally ending Kenya's 22-month Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission — the UN-authorized force established under Security Council Resolution 2699 (October 2023) to help stabilize Port-au-Prince beginning in June 2024. Senior Kenyan government officials traveled to Port-au-Prince to personally oversee the final withdrawal ceremony, with officials stating Kenya was 'proud' of its officers' service and framing the conclusion as the principled fulfillment of Kenya's international commitments. Over 22 months, Kenya deployed approximately 700–800 of a pledged 1,000 officers, trained over 2,000 Haitian National Police personnel, helped secure Toussaint Louverture International Airport, and enabled the formal installation of the Transitional Presidential Council in April 2024. Despite these achievements, the mission was hampered throughout by chronic funding shortfalls, equipment gaps, and the entrenched firepower of Haiti's gang networks — and gang control of Port-au-Prince expanded from approximately 80% to 90% of the capital during the mission's lifetime. The withdrawal completes a phased drawdown that began in March 2026, when the MSS mandate formally expired; 150 officers had returned earlier (April 21) and the final contingent departed on April 28. The security transition now rests on the Gang Suppression Force (GSF) advance contingent of approximately 545 personnel — 400 Chadian troops, 75 Guatemalan police, and 70 Salvadoran police — conducting joint operations with the Haitian National Police while the full 5,500-person GSF works toward operational capacity projected for fall to end of 2026. Security analysts warn that the transition period — particularly in Croix-des-Bouquets, Delmas, and downtown Port-au-Prince — represents a window of heightened vulnerability. Haiti's National Police Director General had acknowledged on April 26 that the drawdown had 'weakened positions previously stabilized through joint operations.' The mission's formal end closes a chapter that began when Kenya, under President William Ruto, volunteered to lead the multinational force after the UN Security Council authorized intervention to address Haiti's security collapse.