PM Fils-Aimé Claims Gang Territory in Port-au-Prince Fell from 90% to 75%, Expresses 'Cautious Optimism'

On May 1, 2026, Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé appeared in an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, making the significant claim that gang control of Port-au-Prince had decreased from approximately 90% to approximately 75% — the first time gangs have been pushed on the defensive since the crisis began following President Moïse's assassination in 2021. The PM attributed the shift to joint operations between the Gang Suppression Force's advance contingent and the Haitian National Police conducted in the days immediately following Kenya's final MSS officer departure on April 28. Fils-Aimé outlined a three-part security strategy: Force (joint GSF and police operations targeting gang strongholds), Justice (new judicial panels established to prosecute mass crimes committed by gang leaders), and Reinsertion (the CNTDR youth program providing alternative livelihood pathways for gang members aged 13–18). He stated he was 'cautiously optimistic' about Haiti's security trajectory and said his government was focused on a transition 'from aid to trade' — emphasizing job creation and private sector investment as the path to breaking the structural conditions enabling gang recruitment. The PM identified transnational crime — particularly drug and arms trafficking supply chains — as the core structural driver of gang power and financing. Security analysts and independent monitors note that the 75% figure reflects government-assessed data; UN BINUH's most recent independent estimate, as of March 2026, placed gang control at approximately 90% of Port-au-Prince. Analysts note that the gap between the government's optimistic assessment and UN monitoring figures may reflect different methodologies — the government may be counting areas where gangs have been temporarily pushed back versus the UN's assessment of territory fully controlled by non-gang actors — as well as a political motivation to signal progress during the vulnerable MSS-to-GSF transition window.