Kenya says it will send an all-female Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team to reinforce security efforts in Haiti where criminal gangs are seeking to overthrow the government of the French-speaking Caribbean Community (Caricom) country.

Kenya sent more than 200 police officers to Haiti on Saturday, providing backup to an understaffed security mission in the Caribbean country where rampant gang violence has displaced more than a million people.

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenya has deployed 217 more police officers to Haiti as part of a multinational force to curb gang violence plaguing the Caribbean nation, Kenya's interior minister said on Saturday. According to the minister, Kipchumba Murkomen, the police officers departed from Kenya on Friday.

There are still significant challenges with the funding that were already there with the Biden administration.”

More than 200 Kenyan police officers have been sent to Haiti to assist an understaffed security mission. President William Ruto has pledged to send 1,000 troops to Haiti in support of the United Nations.

The 217 officers will reinforce the first batch of 400 officers who were deployed last year to the Caribbean nation to restore peace. Gang violence killed at least 5,601 people in Haiti in 2024

Another 217 Kenyan police officers arrived Saturday in Haiti as part of a UN-backed mission to tackle gang violence and restore stability in that nation, the Kenyan presidency confirmed.

Kenya deployed over 200 police officers to Haiti to strengthen the anti-gang mission amid escalating violence. With over a million displaced, the U.N.-backed initiative has seen pledges from 10 countries but minimal action.