Haitian Gang Leader Tells AP He Asked the UN for Dialogue as Clashes Intensify, a Crisis Felt Deeply in South Florida

One of Haiti's most powerful gang leaders told The Associated Press on Monday, Nov. 2, that he has written to the United Nations secretary-general asking the organization to send a delegation to Haiti for dialogue and mediation, as fighting intensifies around Port-au-Prince between gangs and a U.N.-backed security force now reinforced by Salvadoran troops. Wilson Joseph, known as Lanmò Sanjou and leader of the 400 Mawozo gang, made the request in his first interview with a major international news organization. For South Florida, home to the largest Haitian community in the United States, the escalating violence comes as thousands of Haitian immigrants have lost their legal protections and as air travel to the country is only partly restored.

What Joseph told the AP

Joseph confirmed that he wrote to the U.N. secretary-general. In the two-page letter, sent Nov. 1, he said he has "officially raised the white flag" since Aug. 20 and is seeking a "peaceful solution to the national crisis, in particular through the opening of a dialogue between the international forces present in Haiti and the 400 Mawozo group," the AP reported.

"I remain convinced that dialogue must prevail over force," he wrote, adding that "the protection of civilians, particularly children and vulnerable families, must be at the heart of any international initiative."

Joseph also said that four Salvadoran aviation technicians who disappeared after an Oct. 18 attack are dead, and that the attack happened in territory controlled by another gang, Chen Mechan. He offered no evidence. Haiti's government has said the four were abducted, and El Salvador's government believes they are alive, according to the AP.

In the interview, Joseph said he is ready to talk and to lay down weapons but declined to say what he wants in return, saying he would discuss that with a peace commission. He accused security forces of drone strikes that kill children and the elderly, rejected accusations that his gang has killed innocent Haitians and alleged that the same politicians who armed Haiti's gangs are now bringing in foreign troops. His letter warned that "Mr. Nayib Bukele's vengeful remarks, expectations, and threats" could lead to "an escalation of violence and a logic of reprisals, of which the Haitian people would be the first victims."

The UN's response

U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric confirmed late Monday that the organization received a letter bearing Joseph's signature. "However, receipt of such a letter does not constitute endorsement of its contents, recognition of its author, or a position by the United Nations," he said.

Dujarric noted that the vast majority of Salvadoran military personnel in Haiti are not deployed under the U.N.-backed gang suppression force and therefore fall outside its mandate and reporting. He said any security operation "must be carried out in full accordance with applicable international law."

How the fighting escalated

The current surge in violence traces to Oct. 18, when gangs opened fire on an armored vehicle carrying Salvadoran personnel in the Santo area of Croix-des-Bouquets, near Port-au-Prince. It was the first major attack since the international gang suppression force began operating in Haiti. Four Salvadoran aviation technicians fled the burning vehicle and have been missing since.

Days later, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele announced a military operation to rescue them and demanded that gang leaders return the men "alive, unharmed." He has since deployed about 2,000 troops to Haiti, the AP reported. Clashes have intensified in the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac area as the U.N.-backed force, working with Haitian police and soldiers and with Vectus Global, a private security firm founded by former Navy SEAL and Blackwater founder Erik Prince, has fought armed groups there.

The gang suppression force includes troops from El Salvador, Chad, Jamaica, Guatemala and other countries, with more than 2,000 personnel on the ground. The U.N. Security Council has extended its mandate through at least March 2027. Gangs control an estimated 70% of Port-au-Prince, and gang violence has displaced nearly 1.5 million Haitians in recent years. More than 5,700 people were killed or injured from January through mid-September, according to the U.N.

Who is 400 Mawozo

The gang, whose name roughly translates to "400 Simpletons," operates largely in Croix-des-Bouquets. It is known for kidnappings, including the October 2021 abduction of 17 missionaries, 16 of them from the United States and one from Canada. Five children were among them, and all were eventually released. A gang spokesperson who declined to be identified told the AP those were not kidnappings and denied that 400 Mawozo is a terrorist organization.

The U.S. government has offered a $1 million reward for Joseph, who was indicted in the United States in 2022 on charges of hostage taking and conspiracy to commit hostage taking. Both he and Kraze Barye leader Vitelhomme Innocent have been sanctioned by the U.N. and the U.S.

Why it matters in South Florida

Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties are home to the nation's largest Haitian community, and many families there have relatives in the areas now caught in the fighting. The violence also shadows the end of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians. After the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on June 25 that the administration could end the program, roughly 350,000 Haitian immigrants nationwide lost federal work authorization and deportation protections this summer, including an estimated 150,000 to 158,000 living in Florida, WPTV reported. People with another legal status or separate work authorization may remain protected.

Haiti was first designated for TPS after its 2010 earthquake. The U.S. House passed a bipartisan bill in April to extend Haitian TPS for three years, 224-204, but it has not cleared the Senate. The Department of Homeland Security has offered a plane ticket and $2,600 to those who register to leave voluntarily, while the State Department still rates Haiti at Level 4, Do Not Travel, citing crime, kidnapping, terrorism, unrest and limited health care. Haiti has been under a national state of emergency since March 2024.

The loss of TPS has rippled through Florida employers that rely on Haitian workers in health care, hospitality, construction and long-term care. In July, a Key West restaurant manager told the AP he had to suspend six longtime Haitian employees after their work permits lapsed, and a South Florida social services agency said it had to tell 18 workers who cared for elderly Holocaust survivors that they were no longer eligible to work.

Flights, families and the courts

Travel links remain limited. American Airlines resumed service to Haiti on Sunday, Nov. 1, with a flight from Miami International Airport to Cap-Haïtien staffed by an all-Haitian crew, WSVN reported. It was the first time in two years that a major U.S. airline was allowed to fly to the country. The Federal Aviation Administration's ban on U.S. flights to Port-au-Prince, first imposed in 2024 after planes arriving there were hit by gunfire, runs until March 2027.

South Florida is also the setting for the U.S. prosecution of the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. Federal prosecutors say the region served as a central location for planning and financing the plot, and trials in Miami federal court resumed this fall, the AP reported.

What's next

It is unclear whether the U.N. will act on Joseph's request. Its spokesperson stressed that receiving the letter does not mean recognizing its author. The fate of the four Salvadoran technicians remains unconfirmed, and Bukele has warned of a stronger response if they are not returned alive. Haiti is also preparing for its first general election in more than a decade. For Haitian families in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, the coming weeks will test whether the push for dialogue gains traction or the fighting near Port-au-Prince keeps spreading.