A young American missionary couple was murdered in Haiti, amid the wave of widespread gang violence that continues to ravage the country.
Natalie Lloyd, 21, and her husband David, 23, – as well as Jude Montis, a 20-year-old Haitian – were ambushed Thursday by armed men as they left a church.
The couple’s death was confirmed on Facebook by Natalie’s father, Missouri State Senator Ben Baker.
“This afternoon they were attacked by gangs and both were murdered,” he wrote. “They went to heaven together.”
The organization for which Natalie and David worked, Missions in Hope, confirmed to the American media that Montis had been the third fatality in the incident.
In a previous Facebook post, the organization said that the three had been attacked by two different armed groups, and that it had all started with an attack by armed men traveling in three vehicles.
After another group arrived and a gang member was shot and killed, the three missionaries were trapped in a house while the gang was “in full attack mode,” the post added.
“They are hiding there, the gangs shot at all the windows of the house and continue to shoot,” the message said.
Three hours later, they confirmed that all three had died.
Missions in Hope has a school and a residence for children in Haiti.
“Absolutely heartbreaking”
The US State Department is aware of the deaths, a spokesperson told reporters.
“We offer our deepest condolences to the family for their loss,” the spokesperson said. “We are ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance.”
On the social network X, Missouri Governor Mike Parson called the deaths “absolutely heartbreaking news.”
The White House on Friday called for the rapid deployment of a multinational force led by Kenya to stabilize the situation in the Caribbean nation.
“The security situation in Haiti cannot wait”a National Security Council spokesperson said, adding that President Joe Biden had committed to supporting the “accelerated deployment” of the force in talks with Kenya’s president on Thursday.
“Our hearts go out to the families of those killed who are experiencing unimaginable pain,” the spokesperson added.
In a similar incident in 2021, 17 American missionaries were kidnapped and held east of Port-au-Prince.
Five were freed and 12 eventually escaped using the stars to navigate through dense bush.
Haiti in crisis
Since the beginning of the year, gangs have been carrying out deadly coordinated attacks in Haiti, demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry.
He agreed to resign in March and the country is now governed by a nine-member transitional council.
But the gangs have capitalized on the power vacuum left by Henry’s departure and expanded their control over large swaths of the Caribbean nation.
Kenya must deploy police forces to Haiti at the head of an international force intended to help the country’s transitional authorities restore order.
Earlier this week, the UN children’s agency Unicef warned that violence and widespread malnutrition have brought Haiti’s health system “to the brink of collapse.”
