An Irish missionary has been released from captivity in Haiti, along with 6 orphanage staff and a 3-year-old child, following a kidnap ordeal that lasted nearly a month.
By James Blears
Gena Heraty, an Irish missionary who has worked in Haiti since 1993, and seven other people including a 3-year-old child, are now free from a nearly-month-long kidnapping ordeal.
The Director of the St. Helene Orphanage was kidnapped along with the seven other people on August 3.
The news was confirmed by Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister, Simon Harris, who says they are safe and well.
Ms. Heraty’s family have thanked the Irish Foreign Ministry, which led and coordinated a release campaign.
The abduction took place on August 3 at the St. Helene Orphanage, near the capital, Port-Au-Prince, which cares for more than two hundred orphans. Its parent group is the Little Brothers and Sisters International Organization.
Gunmen broke through the perimeter wall and then gained access to the main building of the orphanage.
It’s not the not first time that the institute has been attacked. No street gang has claimed responsibility for this latest incident.
Kidnappings happen daily in lawless Haiti. One of the most notorious cases happened in 2021, when the 400 Mawoza gang kidnapped 17 missionaries, including five children. Most of them were held captive for more than three months.
The United Nations says more than 3,000 people have been killed, and 336 kidnapped, in Haiti during the first six months of this year.
