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Kenyan police arrive in Haiti on enforcement mission led by deputy IG Noor Gabow

Deputy Inspector General of Police Noor Gabow when he visited the National Police Service operation bases in Laikipia, Baragoi and Samburu North on February 14, 2023. (Photo: Administration Police)

By Mary Wambui and Mwangi Maina | Tuesday, May 21, 2024

A Kenyan delegation, comprising officials including the force commander of the enforcement mission, landed in Haiti aboard a Sunrise Airways flight on Monday afternoon ahead of Ruto's meeting with US President Joe Biden.

Kenyan President William Ruto touched down in Atlanta, United States on Monday, kicking off a critical week of negotiations with President Joe Biden's administration concerning the anticipated deployment of a multinational security mission to Haiti.

Concurrently, a small Kenyan delegation, comprising officials including the force commander of the enforcement mission led by Kenya, landed in Haiti aboard a Sunrise Airways flight on Monday afternoon.

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Their purpose is to conduct an assessment of the base and airport construction in the Caribbean nation.

According to insiders, Deputy Inspector General of Police Noor Gabow who formed part of the delegation that visited Port au Prince last year for planning and reconnaissance will serve as the Force Commander of the Multinational Security Support Mission and has already arrived in the gang violence-hit Caribbean country.

Noor Gabow and his team of 200 officers are set to lay the ground for the deployment of the remaining Kenyan officers who are set to be deployed in batches.

Another batch is expected to leave Nairobi as soon as President Ruto jets back to the country after his trip to the United States.

As reported by the Miami Herald on Monday, the delegation is slated to remain in Haiti throughout the week, engaging in various meetings, including sessions with the United Nations Integrated Office in Port-au-Prince.

Police officers throw tear gas at demonstrators during a protest against insecurity in Carrefour-Feuilles, a district of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on August 14, 2023. (Photo by Richard PIERRIN / AFP)

Far-reaching implications

The Haiti deployment looms large as a geopolitical imperative for the Ruto administration, with far-reaching implications for both Nairobi and Washington.

As President Ruto engages with his host, Joe Biden, at the White House, sources indicate the focus of their discussions, amid the customary fanfare and diplomatic formalities, will centre squarely on Haiti.

Positioned as a crucial element of American foreign policy in the Western Hemisphere, the Haiti enforcement mission holds significant strategic importance for Washington.

The arrival of tens of thousands of Haitian migrants at the US-Mexico border in 2021 generated domestic criticism from all sides that the Biden administration has poorly handled a cascading humanitarian crisis.

People set tyres on fire during a demonstration demanding the resignation of former Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry on March 7, 2024. (Photo: Guerinault Louis/Anadolu via AFP)

As of September 24, 2021, federal authorities in the US had completed the clearance of an encampment that had accommodated as many as 15,000 Haitian migrants.

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas disclosed that 2,000 of these migrants had been deported to Haiti via US-chartered flights, while eight thousand had voluntarily returned to Mexico.

Noor Gabow is an all-rounded and seasoned police officer with years of experience at the front lines both locally and abroad in several peacekeeping operations.

Last year, he was named the commander of Operation Maliza Uhalifu in the NorthRift and tasked with leading the operations activities in six counties at the time.

The career officer holds a governance, peace, and security studies masters degree.

He will be expected to guide the mission to achieve its mandate and immediate role of helping establish a functional police service that enforces the rule of law in the Caribbean nation.