An American nurse on a humanitarian mission in Haiti and her child have been kidnapped in a case drawing international attention.
Faith-based group El Roi Haiti confirmed July 29 that Alix Dorsainvil and her child were kidnapped July 27 from the nonprofit's campus near Port au Prince. Ms. Dorsainvil is originally from Middleton, N.H., and married to the founder and director of El Roi Haiti, Sandro Dorsainvil. She has been operating a children's clinic for El Roi Haiti.
"We are aware of reports of the kidnapping of two U.S. citizens in Haiti," an official with the U.S. State Department told The New York Times, noting that U.S. officials are working with their Haitian counterparts and declining further comment.
Port au Prince has experienced an increase in kidnappings and killings of civilians in recent weeks, at least 40 people abducted and 75 murdered between May and mid-July.
The State Department issued a travel advisory for Haiti July 27, ordering nonemergency embassy personnel and their families to evacuate and advising all U.S. citizens in Haiti to leave as soon as possible.
"Kidnapping is widespread, and victims regularly include U.S. citizens," the State Department noted in its advisory. "Kidnappers may use sophisticated planning or take advantage of unplanned opportunities, and even convoys have been attacked. Kidnapping cases often involve ransom negotiations and U.S. citizen victims have been physically harmed during kidnappings. Victim's families have paid thousands of dollars to rescue their family members."
Ms. Dorsainvil graduated with a degree in nursing from Regis College in Weston, Mass., in 2014, the Boston Globe reported.