# AYITI INTEL - DAILY

**Date:** 2026-02-11
**Language:** EN
**Pages:** 11

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## Table of Contents

- [EXECUTIVE SUMMARY](#executive-summary)
- [QUICK SUMMARY FOR STAKEHOLDERS](#quick-summary-for-stakeholders)
- [DEVELOPMENT 1](#development-1)
- [HISTORICAL CONTEXT](#historical-context)
- [TALKING POINTS](#talking-points)
- [RECOMMENDED DECISIONS](#recommended-decisions)
- [DEVELOPMENT 2](#development-2)
- [HISTORICAL CONTEXT](#historical-context)
- [TALKING POINTS](#talking-points)
- [RECOMMENDED DECISIONS](#recommended-decisions)
- [DEVELOPMENT 3](#development-3)
- [HISTORICAL CONTEXT](#historical-context)
- [TALKING POINTS](#talking-points)
- [RECOMMENDED DECISIONS](#recommended-decisions)
- [DEVELOPMENT 4](#development-4)
- [HISTORICAL CONTEXT](#historical-context)
- [TALKING POINTS](#talking-points)
- [RECOMMENDED DECISIONS](#recommended-decisions)
- [WHAT TO WATCH NEXT](#what-to-watch-next)
- [NEXT 24 TO 48 HOURS](#next-24-to-48-hours)
- [THIS WEEK](#this-week)
- [STRATEGIC HORIZON](#strategic-horizon)
- [PRIMARY SOURCES](#primary-sources)

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## EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

US Charge d'Affaires Henry Wooster testified before the Senate Appropriations
Subcommittee on February 10 revealing that Haiti faces a force imbalance of
approximately 3,000 heavily armed gang fighters against only 400 effectively
combat-ready PNH officers. Wooster classified Haiti's gangs as proto-insurgent
movements generating between 60 and 75 million dollars annually through systematic
extortion. The International Rescue Committee simultaneously warned Haiti is on the
verge of humanitarian collapse with funding at only 3.4 percent of documented need.
Prime Minister Fils-Aime consolidated executive authority by dismissing Economy
Minister Alfred Metellus and assuming the portfolio himself. The United States
announced an additional 16 million dollars in food security funding.



## QUICK SUMMARY FOR STAKEHOLDERS

Wooster Senate testimony quantifies catastrophic security force imbalance for first
time.
IRC declares Haiti on verge of humanitarian collapse with funding crisis.
Fils-Aime fires potential rival and assumes direct control of national treasury.
US provides 16 million dollars additional food security funding amid policy reframing.
Gang extortion economy operates as parallel revenue state worth 60 to 75 million
annually.



## DEVELOPMENT 1

US Charge d'Affaires Henry Wooster appeared before the Senate Appropriations
Subcommittee on State Foreign Operations on February 10 to present testimony titled
Haiti 2026 Security and Foreign Assistance Priorities. Wooster provided the most
detailed official US assessment of Haiti's security balance to date revealing force
disparities that fundamentally reframe the nature of the crisis. The testimony marks a
significant shift in US policy language from characterizing Haiti's security challenge as
gang violence to explicitly identifying it as a proto-insurgency threatening state survival.
Wooster stated that armed gangs in Haiti number approximately 12,000 individuals with
roughly 3,000 heavily armed and operating under coordinated command structures
including Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif. Against this force the Police Nationale d'Haiti
maintains approximately 6,000 officers on its rolls but Wooster testified that maximally
February 11, 2026

400 do most of the fighting. This produces an effective combat ratio of 7.5 gang fighters
for every one active PNH combatant. Wooster characterized these armed groups as
proto-insurgent movements rather than criminal gangs noting they now control territory
generate systematic revenue and challenge state authority in ways that exceed
traditional organized crime. The gangs generate between 60 and 75 million dollars
annually according to Haiti Finance Ministry estimates primarily through extortion of
shipments transiting from the Dominican Republic. This revenue stream allows gangs to
operate as a parallel state with systematic taxation of street vendors bus companies
car dealerships power plants factories industrial parks and seaports.
The testimony included appearance by Austin Holmes CEO of Caribbean Security
Group who testified that without freedom of movement humanitarian response cannot
succeed. Holmes stated that aid cannot move food cannot reach children clinics cannot
function and schools cannot operate. The combined testimony establishes that military
operations alone cannot defeat economically self-sustaining armed groups and that
financial disruption through sanctions and supply chain interdiction must complement
security operations. Wooster emphasized the need to address economic problems that
fuel violence alongside direct military pressure.



## HISTORICAL CONTEXT

US Congressional testimony on Haiti security has historically focused on humanitarian
conditions and police training programs. The February 10 testimony represents the first
time a US official has publicly quantified the specific combat force imbalance and
explicitly framed the crisis as proto-insurgency rather than criminal violence.



## TALKING POINTS

Wooster testimony quantifies for first time that only 400 PNH officers are effectively
engaged in combat operations.
Gang forces number 3,000 heavily armed fighters operating under coordinated
command producing combat ratio of 7.5 to 1.
Gangs classified as proto-insurgent movements challenging state survival not merely
criminal organizations.
Gang revenue of 60 to 75 million annually from extortion makes them economically
self-sustaining.
Policy reframing justifies more aggressive military intervention and financial warfare
February 11, 2026

measures.
GSF deployment becomes existentially urgent given revealed force imbalance.



## RECOMMENDED DECISIONS

International community should accelerate GSF deployment timeline given extreme
force imbalance revealed by Wooster testimony.
US and partners should immediately implement financial sanctions targeting gang
revenue streams from Dominican Republic shipments.
Humanitarian donors should respond to IRC collapse warning by closing massive
funding gap currently at 3.4 percent of need.
Security planning should shift from counternarcotics model to counterinsurgency
framework incorporating territorial control objectives.
Supply chain interdiction measures should target checkpoint economies and systematic
extortion networks.
CONFIDENCE
High confidence based on official institutional reporting.



## DEVELOPMENT 2

The International Rescue Committee published a major emergency warning on
February 11 stating that Haiti is on the verge of humanitarian collapse and that without
immediate international action to protect civilians and rush in aid the consequences will
be catastrophic. The warning comes with updated humanitarian indicators showing
dramatic deterioration across protection metrics food security and forced displacement.
IRC Country Director Mwiti Mungania stated the organization has documented
conditions that indicate systemic failure of humanitarian response mechanisms.
IRC data shows more than 8,000 people were killed in Haiti in 2025 representing a 20
percent increase over 2024. Gender-based violence cases reached 8,000 in 2025 up
25 percent from the previous year. Sexual violence against children has increased
1,000 percent since 2023 while child recruitment by armed gangs rose 700 percent in
the first quarter of 2025 alone. The organization reports that 1.4 million people are
February 11, 2026

displaced with half being children and that 270,000 individuals were forcibly returned to
Haiti in 2025 representing a 36 percent increase over 2024 deportation figures. The
most alarming indicator is that humanitarian funding stands at only 3.4 percent of
documented need creating operational constraints that make effective response
impossible.
The World Food Programme has been forced to suspend life-saving meals for newly
displaced families and slash food rations in half due to funding shortfalls. WFP requires
44 million dollars to maintain operations through April 2026 but current funding levels
cannot support even reduced programming. The combination of deteriorating security
conditions expanding displacement and collapsing humanitarian funding creates
conditions for mass starvation and protection failures. International Organization for
Migration data shows that 98 percent of forced returns came from the Dominican
Republic with deportations of adult women up 92 percent girls up 152 percent and boys
up 133 percent compared to 2024. Nineteen percent of deportees were already
internally displaced before leaving Haiti and 60 percent had been previously deported
indicating recidivism driven by lack of viable options inside Haiti.



## HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Haiti has experienced multiple humanitarian crises since the 2010 earthquake but the
current situation represents the first time that humanitarian funding has fallen below 5
percent of documented need while security conditions simultaneously prevent access
to affected populations.



## TALKING POINTS

IRC declares Haiti on verge of humanitarian collapse requiring immediate international
action.
Humanitarian funding at catastrophic 3.4 percent of need making effective response
operationally impossible.
Child protection indicators show 1,000 percent increase in sexual violence and 700
percent rise in gang recruitment.
More than 8,000 killed in 2025 up 20 percent from previous year indicating escalating
lethality.
WFP forced to cut rations in half and suspend meals for newly displaced due to funding
crisis.
February 11, 2026

270,000 forcibly returned in 2025 with 60 percent recidivism rate showing deportation
ineffectiveness.



## RECOMMENDED DECISIONS

International donors should immediately mobilize emergency funding to close gap
between 3.4 percent current level and minimum operational threshold.
Protection actors should prioritize child safeguarding given 1,000 percent increase in
sexual violence against minors.
Deportation policies should be suspended pending stabilization given 19 percent of
returnees were already internally displaced.
WFP should receive priority funding to restore full rations and resume meals for newly
displaced families.
Humanitarian access negotiations should intensify given that security conditions
prevent aid delivery to affected populations.
CONFIDENCE
High confidence based on official institutional reporting.



## DEVELOPMENT 3

Prime Minister Alix Fils-Aime executed his most politically significant governance move
on February 7 by revoking Alfred Metellus as Minister of Economy and Finance and
appointing himself to the portfolio ad interim. The decision came during the first Council
of Ministers meeting held immediately after the Transitional Presidential Council
handover ceremony and represents an unprecedented concentration of executive and
fiscal authority in the hands of the Prime Minister. The move is widely interpreted as
retaliation against Metellus who had been floated by several CPT members as
Fils-Aime's potential replacement during the late January attempt to oust the Prime
Minister.
Zantray News characterized the dismissal as taking on the appearance of revenge
noting that the action functions as an assertion of Fils-Aime's authority over potential
rivals within the transitional government. By assuming direct control of the Economy
February 11, 2026

and Finance Ministry Fils-Aime now personally controls both the government apparatus
and the national treasury creating a single point of authority for all budget allocations
fiscal policy decisions and donor fund disbursement. This concentration of power
deviates from the power-sharing model that characterized previous phases of the
transition and may create friction with political stakeholders who view the move as
exclusionary rather than inclusive governance.
The February 7 Council of Ministers also adopted a project de decret placing the
direction of executive power collectively in the hands of the Council of Ministers. This
institutional arrangement formally addresses the absence of a head of state by
distributing presidential functions across the cabinet with Fils-Aime presiding. Three
additional arretes were presented to establish provisional municipal commissions in
Port-au-Prince Petion-Ville and Gressier restoring some local administrative capacity in
the capital region pending elections. Minister of Tourism John Herrick Dessources
presented strategic priorities for the tourism sector on February 10 signaling an attempt
to project normalcy and forward economic planning despite deteriorating security
conditions.



## HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Haiti's transitional governments have historically featured power-sharing arrangements
with economy and finance portfolios held by technocratic appointees separate from the
prime minister. Fils-Aime's self-appointment to the finance portfolio represents the first
time a transitional prime minister has directly controlled both executive and fiscal
functions simultaneously.



## TALKING POINTS

Fils-Aime fired Economy Minister Metellus who had been floated as potential PM
replacement during January ouster attempt.
PM now directly controls both government operations and national treasury in
unprecedented power concentration.
Decision interpreted as assertion of authority over political rivals rather than inclusive
governance approach.
Council of Ministers decree distributes presidential functions across cabinet addressing
absence of head of state.
Municipal commissions established for Port-au-Prince Petion-Ville and Gressier
February 11, 2026

restoring local administrative capacity.



## RECOMMENDED DECISIONS

Political actors should assess whether power concentration stabilizes decision-making
or increases single-point-of-failure risk.
International partners should monitor fiscal transparency given PM's direct control of
treasury and donor fund flows.
Business stakeholders should establish direct engagement channels with Fils-Aime
given centralized fiscal authority.
Transitional governance observers should track cabinet stability for signs of
resignations or political backlash.
Budget implementation monitoring should intensify given lack of institutional checks on
PM fiscal decisions.
CONFIDENCE
High confidence based on official institutional reporting.



## DEVELOPMENT 4

The United States announced on February 10 that it is providing an additional 16
million dollars for an ongoing resilience and food security program in Haiti. The funding
announcement came from the US Embassy in Port-au-Prince on the same day as the
Wooster Senate testimony creating coordinated messaging around continued US
commitment despite broader global aid budget constraints. The 16 million dollar
allocation comes on top of the 5 million dollars in military financing for the Forces
Armees d'Haiti announced earlier in February bringing total new US commitments for
this reporting period to 21 million dollars.
The timing of the food security funding announcement alongside the Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee hearing suggests deliberate policy coordination between
State Department operations and Congressional oversight processes. The hearing
featured testimony from both Wooster and Austin Holmes CEO of Caribbean Security
Group and focused explicitly on security and foreign assistance priorities for Haiti in
February 11, 2026

2026. The hearing title Haiti 2026 Security and Foreign Assistance Priorities signals
that Haiti remains a Congressional priority despite competing global demands for US
assistance resources. The policy reframing from gang violence to proto-insurgency
establishes justification for sustained or increased funding levels.
The 16 million dollar food security allocation partially addresses the humanitarian
funding crisis identified by IRC and WFP but remains grossly insufficient given the
scale of need. With humanitarian funding currently at 3.4 percent of documented
requirements and WFP requiring 44 million dollars through April 2026 alone the US
contribution represents important but inadequate response. The funding may serve as a
catalyst for additional donor commitments from European Union Canada or multilateral
institutions. Le Monde published analysis on February 8 noting that Haiti's political
transition operates under the eye of Washington and that the absence of strong
coherent national leadership gives international actors freedom to interfere in internal
affairs. The characterization reinforces perceptions that US policy priorities rather than
Haitian political consensus drive transition timeline and resource allocation decisions.



## HISTORICAL CONTEXT

US assistance to Haiti has historically fluctuated based on Congressional
appropriations cycles and competing global crises. The February 2026 funding
announcements maintain Haiti as a line-item priority despite broader US foreign aid
budget pressures and represent continuation of post-earthquake engagement patterns.



## TALKING POINTS

US announces 16 million dollars additional food security funding bringing February total
to 21 million with FAd'H allocation.
Timing coordinates with Senate hearing establishing Haiti as sustained Congressional
priority.
Wooster testimony reframes crisis from gang violence to proto-insurgency justifying
continued assistance.
Funding inadequate against 3.4 percent humanitarian funding level but may catalyze
additional donor commitments.
Le Monde analysis notes transition operates under Washington's eye due to absence of
strong Haitian leadership.
February 11, 2026



## RECOMMENDED DECISIONS

Humanitarian actors should leverage US funding announcement to pressure European
and Canadian donors for matching contributions.
Haitian political stakeholders should assert national priorities to counter perception of
externally driven transition.
Congressional appropriations committees should follow testimony with specific Haiti
funding line items in upcoming bills.
Private sector should monitor whether security funding translates to territorial gains
enabling business operations.
Diaspora organizations should coordinate advocacy for TPS extension using
humanitarian collapse data from IRC.
CONFIDENCE
High confidence based on official institutional reporting.



## WHAT TO WATCH NEXT





## NEXT 24 TO 48 HOURS

Congressional appropriations response to Wooster testimony may produce
Haiti-specific funding allocations or trigger financial sanctions targeting gang revenue
streams. Fils-Aime governance moves following economy ministry consolidation could
signal inclusive dialogue or further unilateral authority assertions. Delmas demolition
operation fallout should be monitored for protests business disruption or political
criticism following February 11 implementation. Camp Jamaica displacement site fire
investigation should determine if incident was accidental arson or gang-related as
pattern matters for IDP security planning.



## THIS WEEK

GSF advance team formal establishment in Haiti expected this month with Jack
Christofides mission leadership arrival. WFP funding response to US 16 million dollar
commitment may prompt European Union Canada or multilateral announcements.
February 11, 2026

ULCC asset declaration deadline of March 9 approaches for former CPT members
requiring compliance monitoring. Tourism sector strategic priorities announced by
Minister Dessources on February 10 may produce detailed implementation plans.



## STRATEGIC HORIZON

Le Monde assessment that August 30 election date already seems to be moving away
suggests international media pricing in postponement. Expert James Boyard projects
elections possible within twelve months placing new elected authorities by February 7
2027 in optimistic scenario. Gang territorial control sustainability depends on GSF
deployment schedule with first arrivals expected April 2026 and full deployment
October 2026. Humanitarian funding crisis at 3.4 percent of need will drive worsening
malnutrition indicators by second quarter 2026 absent donor mobilization.



## PRIMARY SOURCES

Zantray News February 10 2026 12,000 gang members analysis and PNH pressure
reporting
Better World Campaign February 10 2026 Senate hearing analysis with Wooster and
Holmes testimony
HaitiLibre February 11 2026 daily headlines on carnival cancellation camp fire 16
million funding
International Rescue Committee February 11 2026 humanitarian collapse press
release
International Organization for Migration January 30 2026 forced returns factsheet via
ReliefWeb
Zantray News February 7 2026 Fils-Aime dismisses Metellus assumes economy
portfolio
Gazette Haiti February 7 2026 Council of Ministers decrees coverage
US Embassy Port-au-Prince February 10 2026 16 million food security funding
announcement
Le Monde February 8 2026 transition under Washington's eye analysis
World Food Programme January 14 2026 Haiti emergency 44 million gap and ration
cuts
International Crisis Group December 15 2025 Undoing Haiti's Deadly Gang Alliance
Senate Appropriations Subcommittee February 10 2026 Haiti 2026 Security and
Foreign Assistance Priorities hearing record
Vant Bef Info February 9 2026 Delmas demolition notice
HaitiLibre October 2025 budget 2025-2026 adoption details
February 11, 2026



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*Exported from AYITI INTEL Reader on 2026-03-01 05:25 UTC*