The deterioration of Haiti’s security and health environment, while gangs are escalating their control, has created “an absolutely nightmarish situation” for local people, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday.

Before the Security Council considered a proposal to send an international peacekeeping force to the Caribbean island, Guterres said gang control of the port and blockade of fuel distribution had exacerbated other crises.

Without fuel, he said, water could not be distributed, exacerbating the new cholera outbreak.

“The most important treatment for cholera is hydration, and there is no water in the city,” Guterres told reporters.

Guterres said an “armed” intervention in support of Haitian police was needed to open the port and create a humanitarian corridor for the delivery of relief supplies.

“I’m talking about something that needs to be done on the basis of strict humanitarian criteria, regardless of the political dimensions of the problem, that needs to be solved by Haitians themselves,” Guterres said.

The Varreaux tank terminal in Port-au-Prince has been blocked by armed gangs since mid-September, paralyzing the country.

This has led to government requests for outside help. In a recent letter, Guterres urged the UN Security Council to consider deploying an international force in response to a humanitarian crisis.

But the proposal sparked a protest by thousands of Haitians against the government’s call for foreign aid.

The Security Council was due to discuss the situation on Monday afternoon.

According to a draft resolution seen by AFP that is still under discussion, the council could ask UN member states to consider immediately deploying a “multinational rapid reaction force” to support Haitian police.

The text focuses on the implementation of an “arms embargo” targeting specific groups and individuals.

It also proposes asset freezes and a travel ban on individuals and entities associated with armed gangs and criminal networks.

The only specific mention was of Jimmy Cherizier, nicknamed “Barbecue”, the powerful leader of the “G9 Family and Allies” gang group that blocked the Varreaux terminal.

Separately, the three-year resurgence of cholera in the country has produced 66 confirmed cases, 564 suspected cases and 22 deaths as of Monday, mostly in Port-au-Prince, according to Guterres’ spokesman.