U.N. troops find 16 bodies in Haitian capital

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- U.N. peacekeepers on Friday found the bodies of 16 people believed killed in a surge of gang violence, the latest sign the Caribbean nation's capital may be slipping back into disorder after months of relative calm.

The troops from Sri Lanka the bodies in the southern Port-au-Prince slum of Martissant, a U.N. statement said. The slum was the site of a recent spate of gunbattles between warring gangs.

The victims apparently were shot to death in an hours-long gunfight among Haitian gang members fighting for control of the area, said Pierre Esperance, a local human rights activist.

The dead were civilians, not gang members, said Esperance, whose National Coalition for Haitian Rights has monitored gang activity in slums.

The Brazil-led U.N. peacekeeping force stepped up patrols where the bodies were found. Many residents fled the area for fear of more attacks, local radio reported.

The military forces in the area have increased their patrols to protect the population and prevent more acts of violence, the U.N. statement said.

The deaths were the latest in a series of killings and kidnappings that have gripped Haiti's capital in the weeks since the June inauguration of President Rene Preval.

Recent violence has raised fears of a return to the mayhem following a 2004 revolt that toppled then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.