Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Micheál Martin has appealed to the people who kidnapped Irish missionary Gena Heraty in Haiti to release her.

A 3-year-old toddler and seven adults, including a longtime missionary, who were kidnapped in the early morning Sunday in Haiti remain in the hands of armed gangs. The kidnapping occurred after a security breach at the Saint Hélène Orphanage in Kenscoff in the hills above gang-ridden Port-au-Prince.

Gena Heraty, the facility's director, was among several people taken from the privately run Sainte-Hélène orphanage in Kenscoff, near Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, during the early hours of Sunday morning, according to mayor Massillon Jean.