Eight people, including six nuns who were being transported to schools, were kidnapped yesterday Friday in the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince, announced a Catholic organization, the conference of priests and nuns (Conférence haïtienne des religieux, CHR), against the background of the resurgence of crimes of this nature in the Caribbean country.

The CHR “was informed with great emotion of the sad news of the abduction of six nuns of the Community of the Sisters of Saint Anne and others on board the bus that was transporting them,” explained an internal memo obtained by AFP.

Gunmen carried out the kidnapping yesterday at around 07:00 (local time; 15:00 Greek time) on a street in the capital, as the nuns were being taken to various schools where they work, a CHR official who spoke to AFP said.

He gave no further information about the other two passengers.

The head of the monasteries said she did not want to comment “for reasons related to the safety of the victims”.

So far, no source has informed whether the kidnappers have contacted the organization of the Catholic church, whether they have asked for a ransom, or what is the amount they are demanding.

Kidnappings, of celebrities and ordinary people, have multiplied in recent weeks in Port-au-Prince and on national roads. Last week, a doctor and a justice of the peace were kidnapped before being released after a ransom was paid.

The son of another doctor, in charge of health centers, who was kidnapped in late November, remains a hostage, despite the payment of a ransom and protests demanding his release.

Kidnappings are on the rise as gangs that control much of the capital launch deadly attacks.

To address the multi-year security and humanitarian crisis in Haiti, the UN Security Council gave the green light in October to deploy a Kenyan-led multinational armed force to Haiti to assist the Haitian police. However, the timetable for its development remains unclear.