Gangs in Haiti are recruiting children at unprecedented levels, with the number of minors targeted soaring by 70% in the past year, according to a report released Monday by UNICEF. Currently, between 30% to 50% of all gang members in the violence-wracked country are children, according to the U.N.“This is a very concerning trend,” said Geeta Narayan, UNICEF’s representative in Haiti. Recruitment is surging as many schools remain closed and children become increasingly vulnerable, with gang violence leaving more than 700,000 people homeless in recent years, including an estimated 365,000 minors. Many of them live in makeshift shelters where they’re preyed upon by gangs and face physical and sexual violence. “Criminal groups have often used sexual violence to instill fear in rival territories,” it said.

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Persons: ”, Geeta Narayan, Prince, “, ” Narayan, “ They’re, coduct, Guerinault Louis, Kraze Barye, ‘ It’s, Narayan, “ It’s Organizations: UNICEF, Security, Police, Anadolu, Getty Images UNICEF, . Security, Human Rights Watch, Rights Watch, “ Locations: Haiti, Port, Dominican Republic, Hispaniola, “, Prince, Brooklyn, Terre Noire