For having failed to mobilize the international community to provide Haitians with the assistance they need, the Secretary-General of the United Nations has asked forgiveness from the victims of insecurity in Haiti. During his brief visit to the country this week—the second since taking the helm of the global organization—António Guterres acknowledged that his efforts to rally the international community to Haiti’s aid have yet to produce the desired results. From report to report, from one statement to another, from one high-level meeting of the Security Council to the next, from one resolution to another, Haiti’s security crisis continues its relentless course.

The creation and deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), now transformed into the Gang Suppression Force (GSF), has not helped curb the gangs. As evidence, during the very week of Guterres’ visit to Haiti, a new massacre was carried out by gangs north of Port-au-Prince. Fresh clashes between rival gangs in Cité Soleil have also paralyzed operations at the Varreux terminal for several days, preventing the distribution of petroleum products to gas stations. The consequences are already being felt.