At least seven children have been kidnapped in Haiti this week, prompting calls for action against rising gang violence in the impoverished Caribbean nation.

Police say the children were abducted from vehicles near the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, as they were on their way to school.  Details and the exact number of abductions are not clear.  Police have released few details.

The incidents are part of a growing number of kidnappings and gang violence in the country, after a lull following President Rene Preval's election early this year.

United Nations peacekeepers are working with local authorities to calm the violence and rescue the victims.

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Haiti and human rights groups have condemned the violence.

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.