The condition of the third patient is not clear from MSF’s statement. But the group said its ambulance staff were also assaulted in the incident by “law enforcement officers and members of a self-defense group”.

MSF said staff were “violently attacked, insulted, tear-gassed, threatened with death” and held hostage for more than four hours before being released. The motive behind the attack is unclear.

“The act is a shocking display of violence and seriously calls into question MSF’s ability to continue providing essential care to the Haitian people,” said Christophe Garnier, the group’s head of mission in the country.

MSF, also known as Doctors Without Borders, is one of the last non-governmental humanitarian organizations (NGOs) still operating in Haiti, where violent chaos has engulfed the capital.

Since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, armed gangs have seized power in many areas, leading to an increase in street violence in the poorest country in the Americas.

A UN Security Council briefing last month heard that criminal gangs had taken control of 85 percent of the capital.

More than 3,600 people have been killed in Haiti since January and more than 500,000 have been forced from their homes, according to the UN.

The UN sent an international police operation to Haiti, consisting mostly of Kenyan police. The mission is said to have secured several key sites in the capital, including the national hospital, port and airport.

However, several US airlines have suspended flights to the country this week after three planes were hit by gunfire approaching or leaving the airport this week.

A new prime minister was sworn in in Haiti earlier this week. Alix Didier Fils-Aimé said his priority is “restoring security” in the country.