WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has formally notified Congress of its intent to designate two of Haiti’s most powerful and violent gang coalitions, Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif, as foreign terrorist organizations, in a move that would dramatically expand the United States’ legal framework for countering non-state actors driving mass displacement and violence in the Caribbean nation.
According to multiple individuals familiar with the matter, the notification was sent to the foreign relations committees in both chambers of Congress on April 23. It marks a significant escalation in President Donald Trump’s broader campaign to stem the flow of migrants from crisis-wracked nations and reframe global criminal networks under the U.S. counterterrorism apparatus.
The designation would subject anyone providing “material support” to these gangs — including financial assistance, weapons, or even public advocacy — to criminal penalties under U.S. law. The move aligns with earlier actions taken by the Trump administration against Latin American cartels and follows the recent foreign terrorist designation of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang, which Trump used as legal grounds to deport Venezuelan migrants under a centuries-old wartime statute.
The State Department declined to comment publicly, but sources confirmed that the measure specifically targets Viv Ansanm, a formidable coalition of over a dozen gangs formed in September 2023, and Gran Grif, the dominant gang in Haiti’s central Artibonite region. Together, they have helped plunge Haiti into a near-total collapse of civil order, contributing to a humanitarian disaster and the mass exodus of Haitians across the hemisphere.
Viv Ansanm — Creole for “Living Together” — has led a wave of violent uprisings since February 2024, shutting down the Toussaint Louverture International Airport, storming the country’s two largest prisons to release hundreds of inmates, and eventually forcing Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign. The gang alliance merged Haiti’s two largest and once-rival criminal networks, G-9 and G-Pèp, and now controls over 85% of Port-au-Prince.
Gran Grif, led by the feared Luckson Elan, known as “General Luckson,” has been linked to some of the most brutal massacres in the country’s recent history. In October 2024, the group was blamed for the killing of more than 70 people in the town of Pont-Sondé, and it was reportedly behind a more recent assault in Petite Riviere that left several dead, including an 11-year-old child.
Gran Grif’s rise was aided by Prophane Victor, a former Haitian parliamentarian who armed young men in Artibonite. The United Nations and Western governments accuse him of facilitating grave human rights abuses. Victor was arrested in January and sanctioned by both Canada and the United States in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
The Trump administration’s move also comes just months after it revoked protective immigration measures for roughly half a million Haitians in the U.S., signaling a pivot toward hardline immigration enforcement ahead of the 2024 election cycle. Critics of the administration say the new terror designations could further complicate asylum claims for Haitians, many of whom are fleeing precisely the gangs being targeted.
United Nations data paints a grim picture of Haiti’s current crisis. More than 5,600 people were killed in gang-related violence last year, and over 1 million Haitians have been displaced. Entire communities have been overrun or burned down, while critical infrastructure — including prisons, police stations, and religious pilgrimage sites — has been attacked.
The gang offensive has extended beyond the capital. In the city of Mirebalais, hundreds of inmates were recently freed during a violent raid, while nearby Saut d’Eau — a sacred site for Vodou-Catholic pilgrims — was also targeted. In early 2025, gangs reportedly killed over 260 people in the communities of Kenscoff and Carrefour, while national security forces failed to respond for hours.
The resulting turmoil has triggered record levels of hunger. The U.N. now warns that over half of Haiti’s 12 million residents could face acute food insecurity by June. Some 8,400 individuals are projected to starve in displacement camps, the organization added.
Designating Haitian gangs as foreign terrorist groups is a historic step, expanding the legal and political definition of terrorism well beyond traditional targets like al-Qaida and ISIS. If finalized, it would signal that the U.S. now considers Haiti’s criminal networks not just a humanitarian or criminal concern — but a national security threat.
