An American woman and her daughter who were kidnapped in Haiti have been freed, nearly two weeks after their abduction in the capital Port-au-Prince.
Armed men seized the New Hampshire native Alix Dorsainvil and her daughter in late July from a clinic in a gang-controlled area of Port-au-Prince where Dorsainvil works.
Their release was confirmed on Wednesday, in a blog post by El Roi, the Christian humanitarian group she works for which offers medical care, education and other basic services to people in the country’s poorest areas.
“It is with a heart of gratitude and immense joy that we at El Roi Haiti confirm the safe release of our staff member and friend, Alix Dorsainvil and her child who were held hostage in Port au Prince, Haiti. We are so thankful for everyone who joined us in prayer and supported us during this crisis,” the post read.
The group, which was founded by Dorsainvil’s husband, asked that neither she nor her family be contacted, saying: “There is still much to process and to heal from in this situation.”
It gave no further details about the circumstances of Dorsainvil’s release and did not say whether a ransom had been paid.
Gang warfare has increasingly plagued Haiti since the 2021 assassination of the president, Jovenel Moïse. The killing worsened criminal control of Haiti and the innocent are regularly killed, raped and held for ransom.
Kidnapping for ransom is rife, and the majority of victims are Haitians.
Earlier this week, Unicef reported that kidnapping of women and children had surged this year, warning that abductions leave “deep physical and psychological scars”.
Around 300 people have been kidnapped so far this year, close to the total registered for the whole of last year and triple total in 2021.
“Women and children are not commodities. They are not bargaining chips. And they must never be exposed to such unimaginable violence,” said Garry Conille, the agency’s regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean, said in a statement.
The surge in abductions, he added, threatens “both the people of Haiti and those who have come to help”.
