Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa said the country was in “state of war” after several days of violence perpetrated by members of criminal gangs whom he considered “more than 20,000” and qualified as “terrorists”Wednesday January 10. Since the start of the week, several violent incidents have punctuated daily life in Ecuador: live shootings on a television set, prison guards or police officers taken hostage, escapes by gang leaders, etc.
On Tuesday, President Noboa declared that Ecuador was in “internal armed conflict”. The same day, a decree ordered “the mobilization and intervention of the armed forces and the national police” For “guarantee national sovereignty and integrity against organized crime, terrorist organizations and non-state belligerents”.
Mr. Noboa, 36 years old, the youngest president in the history of the country and elected in November on the promise of restoring security, declared a state of emergency for sixty days throughout the country on Monday, the day after the escape from a feared gang leader. He provided on Tuesday an exhaustive list of criminal gangs which he wants to “neutralization”emphasizing the need for the armed forces to act “with respect for human rights”.
Ecuador, a country of 18 million inhabitants once a haven of peace, is ravaged by violence after becoming the main export point for cocaine produced in Peru and Colombia. Street murders increased by 800% between 2018 and 2023, from 6 to 46 per 100,000 inhabitants. In 2023, 7,800 homicides were recorded and 220 tonnes of drugs seized.
Escape of two gang leaders
Adolfo Macias, alias “Fito”, 44, leader of the Choneros – a gang of around 8,000 men according to experts – fled on Sunday from the prison of Guayaquil (Southwest). On Tuesday, Fabricio Colon Pico, a leader of Los Lobos, another powerful gang, also escaped. Peru announced the same day that it had declared a state of emergency along the more than 1,400 kilometers of its border with Ecuador and strengthened its surveillance.
“President Daniel Noboa, you have our full and unreserved support. Please don’t give in”declared former socialist president Rafael Correa (2007-2017), who resides in Belgium and had supported Mr. Noboa’s opponent, Luisa Gonzalez, in the presidential election. “Today is the time for national unity. Organized crime has declared war on the State, and the State must prevail”he added in a video broadcast overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
“Postpone travel plans” for Ecuador
The crisis leads to international reactions. On Wednesday, Spain said it followed with ” worry “ the situation and assured support “democratic institutions”through the voice of his Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez who displayed his ” trust “ in one “soon return to normality”.
France has asked its nationals who would consider going to Ecuador, known for its Galapagos Islands, to “postpone their plans”according to a press release published on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs : “We invite French nationals residing in Ecuador to exercise the greatest caution and to carefully follow the evolution of the situation, referring to the instructions of the French Embassy in Quito. »
China, which has suspended reception of the public in its embassy and consulate there, “assess the security situation” And “supports” the action of the authorities to restore order, declared a spokesperson for Chinese diplomacy, Mao Ning. Russia has asked its nationals to “take into account the instability of the situation when considering travel to Ecuador” And “avoid going to public places”. Moscow has confidence in the Ecuadorian authorities to restore law and order “by their own means, without external interference”added the spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova.
The United States is “extremely concerned about the violence” And “ready to provide assistance”, declared Tuesday Brian Nichols, head of American diplomacy for Latin America. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Washington was prepared to take action. “concrete measures”however excluding any “military support”. Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Peru expressed their support for Ecuador. The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, is “very alarmed by the deterioration of the situation”declared its spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric.
Television set invaded, prison guards executed
On Tuesday, armed men burst onto the set of a public television station in Guayaquil, briefly taking journalists and employees of the channel hostage. Amidst the shooting, the diffusion of these surreal images continued live for many minutes. Until, apparently, the intervention of the police with cries of ” Police ! Police ! ». No one appears to have been killed or injured in the raid and thirteen attackers were arrested, according to police.
After the escape of “Fito”, several mutinies and hostage-taking of guards affected various prisons, relayed by frightening videos broadcast on social networks showing the captives threatened by the knives of masked inmates. On Tuesday, new videos showed the execution of at least two guards, by shooting and hanging.
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The prison administration reported 139 members of its staff being held hostage in five prisons across the country, without commenting on the videos. Security forces have released striking images of their interventions since Sunday in various penitentiaries, showing hundreds of detainees in their underwear, hands on their heads and lying on the ground.
With the state of emergency, the army is authorized to maintain order in the streets (with a nighttime curfew) and prisons. But numerous incidents have been reported, including the kidnapping of seven police officers. In the port city of Guayaquil, where criminal groups are all-powerful, the violence left eight dead and three injured, according to the police chief. Two police officers were also “viciously murdered by armed criminals” in Nobol, near Guayaquil.
The images broadcast on social networks, difficult to verify, fuel the impression of chaos spreading to certain localities: Molotov cocktail attacks, cars set on fire, random shootings at police officers, scenes of panic… In Guayaquil, number of hotels and restaurants have closed and the army is patrolling, it was noted. In the capital Quito, stores and shopping centers also closed prematurely.
The Ministry of Education on Tuesday evening ordered the closure of all schools in the country until Friday. The delinquants “committed bloody and unprecedented acts in the history of the country (…), but this attempt will fail”said Admiral Jaime Vela, head of the Joint Command of the Armed Forces.