Sri Lanka Sends More Boots to Haiti’s Gang Suppression Mission

Another 218 Sri Lankan security personnel, comprising 173 Sri Lanka Army (SLA) personnel and 45 Special Task Force (STF) personnel, departed Sri Lanka on 16 October to join the Gang Suppression Force (GSF) mission in Haiti.

Their departure followed the deployment of a further 280 Sri Lanka Army personnel on 14 October, including 21 officers and 259 other ranks. Together, the two departures account for 498 personnel heading to support the mission.

The newly deployed personnel will join the Sri Lankan contingent already serving in Haiti, where troops are engaged in security operations, including patrols using armoured vehicles and the protection of key supply routes.

Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Army has extended its hospitality to a 50-member Bangladesh contingent travelling through Sri Lanka en route to the same mission. Since arriving on 15 October, the Bangladeshi personnel have received food, accommodation, transportation and other essential facilities provided by the Sri Lanka Army as a gesture of goodwill and mutual cooperation.

The successive deployments and assistance to the Bangladesh contingent highlight Sri Lanka’s involvement in the Haiti security mission and its cooperation with personnel from another country contributing to the operation.