At least nine people have been arrested following the stampede, including police officers and ministry staff.
Published on 15 April 2026
Haiti has begun three days of national mourning after the deadly stampede at Citadel Laferriere in the north of the country.
At least 25 people were killed in clashes at the entrance of the popular tourist spot on Saturday, as some visitors were forced to exit while others were pressed to get inside.
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On Tuesday, the Ministry of Culture and Communications announced that two government officials had been dismissed following the stampede.
A director of the National Institute for Heritage Conservation was accused of “gross negligence”. Others, who served in the Ministry of Culture and Communications, were criticized for “partisan inaction”.
“The Ministry of Culture and Communications, without going into the details of the criminal investigation, believes that the tragedy at La Citadelle is the result of administrative negligence,” it said in a statement. statement.
It added that the government would “fully meet its responsibilities”, as the incident “should shock public conscience”.
The tragedy is one of several crises the Haitian government faces as it approaches the first round of general elections later this year.
Nine suspects have already been arrested in connection with the deadly stampede, including five police officers and two employees of the National Institute for Heritage Conservation.
The crush of people happened when a local DJ hosted a show at the Citadel, a 19th-century fortress built after the Haitian Revolution, when Haiti’s enslaved population overthrew French colonial rule.
Since its construction, the Citadel has become a symbol of Haitian sovereignty.
But stormy weather conditions led to a stampede on Saturday as rain lashed northern Haiti and event attendees ran for cover.
Elsewhere in the country, heavy rains have left at least 12 people dead, and at least 900 homes and a hospital flooded.
The Haitian government also grapples with the threat of mass violence, particularly following the assassination of then-President Jovenel Moise in 2021.
His death has created a power vacuum in Haiti’s government that criminal networks are trying to take advantage of. Federal elections have been postponed repeatedly over the past decade.
Earlier this month, United Nations-backed gang suppression forces began arriving in the country to help combat the violence.
From March 2025 to mid-January this year, the United Nations has counted at least 5,519 gang-related deaths in Haiti. Nearly 16,000 people have been killed and more than 1.5 million displaced since 2022.
But officials called for more assistance as violence continued on Tuesday. Seven people were killed and a police station burned in an overnight gang attack in the Marigot commune.
Marigot mayor René Deneu described the victims as informants who helped the police. He called on the Haitian government to intervene.
“We are asking the prime minister to take all the necessary steps,” he told RadioTelevision Caribes.
