After a three-week suspension due to violent clashes between armed groups, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has gradually resumed activities at the Isaïe Jeanty Maternity hospital in Cité Soleil, Haiti, working alongside the Ministry of Public Health and Population. Since 14 July, the facility has been operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This resumption of services means women can once again receive care, in a context where access to health services remains difficult.

The facility was forced to suspend its activities on 19 June, following five days of intense fighting between armed groups in Cité Soleil, during which bullets struck the maternity. Initially, our teams remained on site with a reduced number of staff to maintain a minimum level of care. But as the violence escalated, they were forced to leave the facility.

“It was a particularly difficult decision, as we know how significant the sexual and reproductive health needs are in Cité Soleil,” explains Diana Manilla Arroyo, MSF head of mission in Haiti. “But continuing under these conditions would have put more lives at risk.”

The fighting has also severely affected residents of Cité Soleil, a commune of Port-au-Prince, forcing many people to flee their homes. 

“Armed men came [to my house], so I grabbed my children and left,” says a patient who was treated at an MSF mobile clinic a few kilometres from the maternity hospital. “My neighbours helped me escape. My brother is a motorbike driver; he wanted to come back to help me, but he came across some armed men who held him and locked him in our house before setting it on fire. He was killed.”

MSF teams have been able to gradually return to the maternity and resume services there, alongside the Ministry of Public Health and Population, due to a relative lull. We provide obstetric care, including emergency care, and care for victims and survivors of sexual violence at Isaïe Jeanty Maternity hospital. In the first half of 2026, the maternity ward supported 995 deliveries and provided care to 122 victims and survivors of sexual violence.

In Port-au-Prince, armed clashes continue to disrupt access to healthcare for thousands of people. MSF reiterates that healthcare facilities, patients, and medical staff must be protected at all times to ensure continued access to care.