Lawless Ecuador descends into ‘civil war’ chaos: President orders army to ‘neutralise’ 20 drug gangs as heavily armed cartel thugs seize TV show, parade terrified hostages and threaten to execute ANYONE found on the streets at night
Ecuador’s president has ordered his military to “neutralize” 20 drug gangs after the country descended into lawless chaos, with heavily armed gangsters parading hostages and threatening to execute anyone found on the streets at night.
At least 10 people have been killed in a series of barbaric attacks by the gangs as the country erupted into a deadly civil war, with hooded gangsters opening fire at a TV studio and inmates executing or kidnapping their prison guards.
The crazed criminals took dozens of police officers hostage during their deadly rampage that saw explosions rip through Ecuador’s cities, with the gangsters declaring: ‘You declared war, you will have war’.
President Daniel Noboa ordered military operations to “neutralize” criminal gangs after gangsters declared war following the prison escape Sunday of one of Ecuador’s most powerful narco bosses.
Eight people were killed and three injured in attacks in the port city of Guayaquil, and two officers were “brutally murdered by armed criminals” in the nearby city of Nobol, police said Tuesday evening.
Long a peaceful haven wedged between top cocaine exporters Colombia and Peru, Ecuador has seen violence explode in recent years as rival gangs with ties to Mexican and Colombian cartels battle for control.
Now the violence threatens to spread to Peru, with the nation sending police officers to the border to prevent any attacks there.
Men with covered faces entered the set of the TC Television network in the port city of Guayaquil and shouted that they had bombs. Sounds similar to gunshots could be heard in the background
In the photo: suspects arrested by police officers in the studio of the public television channel TC, which took several journalists and staff hostage on Tuesday
Police officers carried out an operation on Tuesday at the headquarters of the television station TC, where armed men wearing hoods entered and subdued staff during a live broadcast in Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Ecuadorian police arrest several armed men who broke into the set of a public television channel after Ecuador’s president declared an “internal armed conflict” on Tuesday and ordered military operations against organized crime groups in Guayaquil, Ecuador
Hostages filmed in TV studio in Ecuador as they advocate for drug gang members
Following the escape of Jose Adolfo Macias, also known as ‘Fito’ – leader of Ecuador’s largest gang Los Choneros – Noboa declared a state of emergency and a curfew for the entire country on Monday.
Gangs retaliated, taking police officers hostage, causing explosions in several cities and storming a studio of state-owned TC Television in Guayaquil on Tuesday with guns and explosives.
Hooded attackers fired gunshots during a live broadcast of TC, while a woman could be heard pleading, “Don’t shoot, please don’t shoot.”
The intruders forced the terrified crew to the ground and one person could be heard screaming as the studio lights went out, but the broadcast continued.
Police entered the studio after about 30 minutes of chaos.
The 36-year-old Noboa, who was elected last year on a promise to combat drug-related violence, later ordered military operations against gangs he described as “terrorist organizations and belligerent non-state actors.”
Authorities reported several explosions and torched cars on Tuesday, including in the capital Quito, and said seven police officers had been kidnapped.
A video circulating on social media showed three of the kidnapped officers sitting on the ground with a gun pointed at them as one was forced to read a statement addressed to Noboa.
“You have declared war, you will have war,” the visibly terrified officer read.
‘You have declared a state of emergency. We declare police, civilians and soldiers the spoils of war.’
The statement added that anyone found on the streets after 11 p.m. “will be executed.”
Panic spread on the streets, with shops and businesses in several cities closing early and residents rushing home as face-to-face classes were suspended nationwide until Friday.
Brian Nichols, the top U.S. diplomat for Latin America, said Washington was “extremely concerned” by the violence and kidnappings, and vowed to provide assistance and “remain in close contact” with Noboa’s team.
Prison guards have reportedly been executed by the country’s cartel thugs. Pictured: just before a guard was killed
Ecuadorian soldiers take security measures with a military armored vehicle on the roads after Ecuador’s president declared an ‘internal armed conflict’
An Ecuadorian police unit enters the premises of the Ecuadorian television channel TC after armed men burst into the state television studio live on January 9.
The TV studio in the port city of Guayaquil in western Ecuador was stormed
Peru declared a state of emergency at the border with Ecuador on Tuesday.
The Chinese embassy and consulates in Ecuador announced on Wednesday that services to the public have been suspended.
“The reopening to the public will be announced in due course,” the embassy said in a statement shared on Chinese social media.
Chile, Colombia and Brazil sent messages of support to Noboa on Tuesday.
A manhunt is underway for Fito, who had served a 34-year prison sentence for organized crime, drug trafficking and murder.
The 44-year-old is said to have escaped just hours before police arrived to conduct an inspection at the Guayaquil prison where he was being held.
On Tuesday, officials said another narco boss – Los Lobos leader Fabricio Colon Pico – also escaped since his arrest last Friday for alleged involvement in a plot to assassinate Ecuador’s attorney general.
Unrest has broken out in several prisons, and on Tuesday the SNAI prison authority said 125 guards and 14 administrative officers were being held by inmates in five cities.
Unverified videos circulating on social media claim prisoners armed with knives execute at least two guards.
The SNAI has not commented on the images.
Security forces, in turn, have broadcast videos of numerous prison raids since Sunday, with hundreds of prisoners gathered in courtyards in their underwear and with their hands on their heads.
Noboa had pledged on Monday “not to negotiate with terrorists and not to rest until we return peace to all Ecuadorians.”
Drug violence has taken a heavy toll on the South American country since it became a major stop for cocaine trafficking to the US and Europe.
The number of murders quadrupled between 2018 and 2022 and a record 220 tonnes of drugs were seized last year.
Since February 2021, clashes between prisoners have left more than 460 dead, many beheaded or burned alive.