Kidnapped Irish missionary in Haiti freed along with 7 others

Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald on Aug 29, 2025

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A longtime Irish missionary and Haiti resident kidnapped early this month in the hills above Port-au-Prince along with seven others — including a 3-year-old — has finally been freed by her captors.

Gena Heraty, who served as director of the Saint Helene Home in Kenscoff, was along with another employee the last of the hostages to be released after most found their freedom a week ago. They were kidnapped on Aug. 3 when armed gangs attacked their orphanage in the middle of the night.

“We can confirm that Gena Heraty and the seven Haitian nationals have now been released and reunited with their loved ones,” Nicholas Rogers, director of communications for Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos, NPH International, said in a statement to the Miami Herald.

NPH International’s local affiliate, Nos Petits Frères et Soeurs, operates the orphanage as well as two hospitals: St. Damien Pediatric Hospital, which operates Haiti’s only childhood cancer program, and St. Luck Hospital. Both are located not far from the U.S. embassy in Tabarre.

“This has been an extremely traumatic episode for all involved. Thankfully, it has come to a safe resolution,” Rogers said. “The safety and wellness of the eight individuals held hostage has always been the priority. To protect the identities and personal safety of the seven Haitian nationals, we will not be publicly sharing their names.”

Rogers said NPH wants “to thank the families and friends of the NPH and St. Luke family, and all those who have provided support and prayers in recent days. With this resolution, St. Damien Pediatric Hospital and St. Luke Hospital will re-open their services to the community.”

In response to the kidnapping, both St. Damien Pediatric Hospital and St. Luke Hospital had announced they were temporarily closing their doors.

Heraty was released on Friday morning along with another employee who had decided to remain at her side after the others were freed, according to those familiar with the abduction.

Heraty was kidnapped by a gang whose leader goes by the name Didi and operates in the Kenscoff, Furcy area of the capital. He also calls himself “Izo 2” after the leader of the 5 Segond gang in Haiti, Johnson Andre, aka “Izo,” who is wanted by U.S. authorities for his alleged role in a March 2023 armed hostage taking in Haiti. Unlike the original Izo, Didi is described as an unpredictable and uncontrollable gang leader who has isolated others that are part of the powerful Viv Ansanm gang coalition. His armed members include both young boys and girls, many of them under the age of 18.

The kidnapping drew the attention of Pope Leo, who had issued an urgent appeal for the hostages’ release, and Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin. In appealing for Heraty’s release, Martin described her as the “manifestation of the very best of missionary endeavor, particularly working for children with special needs,” according to the BBC.

The high-profile kidnapping is among several abductions that have continued to take place in Haiti, where armed gangs have carried out attacks against large swaths of the capital to control territory. In July, six workers with the United Nations child welfare agency, UNICEF, were kidnapped while on their way to deliver humanitarian aid. They were finally released on July 28 after being held captive for about three weeks.

Earlier this week the Haiti National Police led a large-scale operation in the area of Kenscoff, not far from where Heraty was being held hostage. Specialized anti-gang police units working alongside about a dozen police officers with the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission and foreign contractors assisting a prime minister drone task force were able to successfully regain control of a key infrastructure — a telecommunications antenna — from armed gangs. They were also able to push out gang members who had taken over a house on the orphanage grounds, and cleared the path for the orphanage to relocated about 244 children to safety.

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