Police have confirmed the body of an employee who died at a Walmart in Halifax over the weekend was found in a walk-in oven.
Haitian gang kills at least 70 people, including 3 infants, UN says
Armed men belonging to the Gran Grif gang killed at least 70 people, including three infants, as they swept through a Haitian town shooting automatic rifles at residents, a spokesperson for the United Nations' Human Rights Office said on Friday.
"We are horrified by Thursday's gang attacks in the town of Pont-Sonde in Haiti's Artibonite department," spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said in a statement.
At least another 16 people were seriously injured in the attack in the early hours of Thursday, including two gang members hit during an exchange of fire with Haitian police, according to the U.N. The gang members reportedly set fire to at least 45 houses and 34 vehicles, forcing residents to flee their homes.
"This odious crime against defenseless women, men and children is not only an attack against victims but against the entire Haitian nation," Prime Minister Garry Conille said on X.
"Security forces, backed by our international partners, are reinforcing their intervention."
In an audio message shared on social media on Thursday, Gran Grif leader Luckson Elan, who was sanctioned by the U.N. last month, blamed the state and victims for the attacks, accusing residents of remaining passive while his soldiers were killed by police or vigilante groups.
"It's Pont-Sonde residents who are at fault. What happened in Pont-Sonde is the fault of the state," he said.
Local media reported on Thursday that thousands of residents from Pont-Sonde were making their way toward the coastal town of Saint-Marc.
Pont-Sonde is a major rice producer located in Haiti's breadbasket Artibonite region at an important crossing connecting the capital Port-au-Prince to the north.
Artibonite has seen some of the worst violence outside the capital, compounding a worsening hunger crisis that has seen half the population suffer from severe food insecurity and thousands in Port-au-Prince facing famine-level hunger.
Gang leader Jimmy "Barbeque" Cherizier, who has acted as spokesperson for an alliance of armed gangs in the capital, said in a video the attack was part of a plan to prevent Artibonite from supplying food to the country.
The number of people internally displaced by the conflict has meanwhile surged past 700,000, nearly doubling in six months despite the partial deployment of a U.N.-backed mission mandated to help under-resourced police restore order.
Haiti's government had requested that the mission, which is made up of volunteer contributions and has so far received just a fraction of the resources it was promised, be converted into a formal U.N. peacekeeping mission. That proposal was blocked by Russia and China at the UN Security Council.
"We call for increased international financial and logistical assistance to the Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti," Al-Kheetan said, calling for an urgent investigation and reparations for the victims.
The UN estimated at the end of September that 3,661 people had been killed in the conflict since January, which amounts to over 13 killed daily this year.
(Reporting by Harold Isaac and Sarah Morland; Editing by Aida Pelaez-Fernandez and Bill Berkrot)
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Man charged after attempting to force his way into the House of Commons: police
On the tenth anniversary of the shooting on Parliament Hill, a man was arrested and charged with trespassing as he attempted to push past security guards into the House of Commons.
'We all got through it': Canadian family stuck in Cuba recalls ordeal amid massive blackout
Ellen Francis says she and her family were having a great time at one of Cuba's famously stunning beaches and exploring the popular tourist town of Varadero when the situation turned into something like a scary movie.
Cooldown expected across Canada before above-seasonal temperatures return
Canada is getting served a smorgasbord of weather this week. The West saw its first sign of winter, while the eastern half of Canada experienced summer-like temperatures on Tuesday.
One dead in multistate E. coli outbreak tied to McDonald's Quarter Pounders, CDC says
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a food safety alert Tuesday regarding an E. coli outbreak that it says is linked with McDonald鈥檚 Quarter Pounders.
Kevin Vickers says 'not a day that goes by' he doesn't think about Parliament Hill shooting
On the 10-year anniversary of the deadly Parliament Hill shooting, former sergeant-at-arms Kevin Vickers says there's 'not a day that goes by' where he doesn't think about it.
A father and his two children who suffered severe burns in a Springfield, Ont. house fire have undergone surgery.
No Canadians in Cuba have requested consular assistance, Global Affairs says
None of the more than 1,600 Canadians currently registered in Cuba have requested consular assistance in returning to Canada, Global Affairs Canada confirmed to CTVNews.ca.
Former Conservative leader says Trudeau 'should move on' amid efforts to oust him
Former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'should move on,' as he faces growing inner-caucus turmoil.
Local Spotlight
Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.
A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.
A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.
A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.
Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.
Looking for a scare with good intentions this Halloween season? The ghosts and ghouls of Eganville, Ont. invite families to tour the Haunted Walk at Lekbor Manor.
The image of a sleepy Saskatchewan small town with 'not a lot going on' is a well-known anecdote. However, one Saskatchewan company is hoping to change that 鈥 and allow communities both on and off the beaten path to share their stories and advertise what they have to offer.
A Moncton, N.B., home has been donated to the Friends of The Moncton Hospital Foundation and will be transformed into a resource hub for people living with cancer.
A Nova Scotia man crossing Canada on foot is passing through southwestern Ontario. Trevor Redmond is perhaps better known as the 鈥楩ellow in Yellow.鈥