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☆ Mexico ICJ hearing: Ecuador showdown over embassy raid begins Tuesday
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Tara John | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —A showdown between Mexico and Ecuador begins on Tuesday at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the culmination of weeks of recrimination over an incident that saw Ecuadorian forces raid Mexico’s embassy in Quito in April, to arrest a former vice president who had been seeking asylum. Mexico is suing Ecuador at the world court over the armed raid, saying it violated the Vienna Convention, a United Nations treaty on diplomatic relations. The incident drew widespread international condemnation, but Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa remains unrepentant, telling CNN affiliate SBS news that he does not regret how Glas was arrested. Meanwhile, Ecuador filed a lawsuit of its own at the ICJ against Mexico over its decision to grant asylum to Glas. The diplomatic spat has seen a host of Latin American leaders across the political spectrum rally around Mexico, and several nations sever ties with Ecuador.

Persons: Jorge Glas, Ecuador’s, Daniel Noboa, Glas, Mexico’s, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Julian Assange, Alicia Barcena, Noboa, –, El, Bukele, Rafael Correa, Correa, CNN’s Abel Alvarado Organizations: CNN, International Court of Justice, Vienna Convention, United, UN, SBS, ICJ, Mexico, Ecuadorian Embassy, Mexican, SBS News, National Assembly Locations: Mexico, Ecuador, Quito, Vienna, United Nations, Mexican, Glas, Ecuador’s, London, Latin America

☆ Ecuador referendum: Early results and gang member’s arrest give President Daniel Noboa’s war on crime a boost
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Abel Alvarado | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Early results from Ecuador’s referendum suggest President Daniel Noboa has won public backing for security measures aimed at boosting his war on crime. And the good news for Noboa was compounded Monday when police announced they had arrested a notorious alleged gang leader. Both those proposals would require modifying Ecuador’s Constitution, which currently forbids the extradition of Ecuadorians under any circumstances. Gang leader arrestedIn another boost for Noboa, police said in a post on X that they had arrested notorious alleged gang leader Fabricio Colon Pico on Monday morning. Thirty-eight other inmates had escaped along with Colon Pico, of which 12 have since been recaptured, Ecuador’s penitentiary service told CNN.

Persons: Daniel Noboa, Noboa, ”, Guillermo Lasso, Fabricio Colon Pico, Colon Pico, Diana Salazar, Colon Pico’s jailbreak, – José Adolfo Macías, Choneros – Organizations: CNN, National Electoral Council, National Assembly, Noboa, Los Lobos Locations: Ecuadorians, Quito, Ecuadorian, Riobamba

☆ In a Country Awash in Violence, a Vote Will Test Its Leader’s Hard-Line Stance
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Genevieve Glatsky | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ecuadoreans will vote on Sunday in a referendum that could give their center-right president greater powers to combat drug-related gang violence and also gauge how he would fare in his bid for re-election next year. President Daniel Noboa, the 36-year-old heir to a banana empire, took office in November after an election season focused on drug-related gang violence, which has surged over the past five years to levels not seen in decades. In January, he declared an “internal armed conflict” and directed the military to “neutralize” the country’s roughly two dozen gangs, which the government labeled “terrorist organizations.” The drastic move allowed soldiers to patrol the streets and prisons, many of which have come under gang control. Two weeks ago, Mr. Noboa took the extraordinary step of arresting an Ecuadorean politician facing a prison sentence who had taken refuge at the Mexican Embassy in Quito, in what experts called a violation of an international treaty on the sanctity of diplomatic posts. The move drew widespread condemnation across the region.

Persons: Ecuadoreans, Daniel Noboa, Noboa Locations: Mexican, Quito

☆ Prison director killed in attack as Ecuador votes in referendum focused on crime
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Ana María Cañizares | Marlon Sorto | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The director of an Ecuadorian prison known as “El Rodeo” was killed Sunday in an attack that came as millions of people in the country headed to the polls for a referendum focused largely on President Daniel Noboa’s war on crime. Ecuador Prosecutor’s Office reported that another person was injured in the attack and that officers on the scene have started an investigation. Parrales was killed the same day that Ecuadorians were called to the polls for a referendum dominated by security issues that could bolster President Daniel Noboa’s agenda to fight crime. Noboa hopes those measures will help him rein in burgeoning levels of organized crime linked to drug cartels. Ecuador was once known as an “island of peace,” nestled between the world’s two largest cocaine producers, Peru and Colombia.

Persons: ”, Daniel Noboa’s, Cosme Damián Parrales Merchán, SNAI, Parrales, CNNE, Noboa, Adolfo Macias Organizations: CNN, SNAI, Ecuador Prosecutor’s, Social Rehabilitation, Ecuadorian National Police Locations: Ecuador, Ecuadorians, ”, Peru, Colombia, United States, Europe, Mexico, Guayaquil

☆ Ecuadorians head to polls for referendum as Noboa seeks backing for war on crime
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Abel Alvarado | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The referendum will ask 11 questions, five that will modify the Constitution if approved and six that are advisory. More than 13 million of Ecuador’s population of nearly 18 million are eligible to vote – and in Ecuador, voting is obligatory. “We require urgent reforms that allow us to protect our security,” Noboa told a military event in March. In response to the escape, the government deployed more than 3,000 police officers and members of the armed forces to find Fito. The referendum has met opposition among some groups who claim the matters can be dealt with in the National Assembly.

Persons: Daniel Noboa, ”, he’s, ” Noboa, John Moore, Guillermo Lasso, Fernando Villavicencio, Adolfo Macias, Noboa, “, CNN’s Christiana Amanpour, Jorge Glas, Glas, Karen Toro Organizations: CNN, National Police, Armed Forces, Ecuadorian National Police, United Nations, Reuters, National Assembly Locations: Quito, Ecuadorian, Ecuador, Ecuadorians, Guayaquil, ”, Peru, Colombia, United States, Europe, Mexico, Mexican

☆ Ecuador’s raid on Mexico’s embassy shocked Latin America. Here’s why it may still pay off for Daniel Noboa
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Stefano Pozzebon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa during his inauguration at the National Assembly in Quito on November 23, 2023. A close ideological ally of Correa, Lopez Obrador had since December allowed Glas to live at the Mexican embassy—territory that is technically off limits for local authorities. Lopez Obrador last week seemed to criticize the election that brought Noboa to power, suggesting the climate of fear created by Villavicencio’s murder had favored Noboa. President of Mexico Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador speaks during a briefing at Palacio Nacional on March 12 in Mexico City. Hector Vivas/Getty ImagesWhile Lopez Obrador is at the sunset of his political career, Noboa is just getting started and seeks a strong platform to run for re-election next year.

Persons: “, ”, Jorge Glas, Ecuador’s, Daniel Noboa, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Noboa, Guillermo Lasso, Fernando Villavicencio, Alfredo ‘ Fito ’ Macias, RODRIGO BUENDIA, Glas, Rafael Correa, Lopez Obrador, Evo Morales, Peru’s Pedro Castillo, Correa, Villavicencio’s, Santiago Orbe, ” Orbe, Mexico Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Hector Vivas, Emilio Lezama, Bukele, Latinobarometro, It’s, it’s Organizations: Bogota CNN —, Colombian, National, Getty, Ecuadorian, CNN, Palacio Nacional, International Court of Justice Locations: Bogota, America, Guyana, Quito, Mexican, Mexico, Latin America, AFP, Ecuador, Glas, Vienna, Ukraine, Mexico City, El, El Salvador

Ecuador was once famous for sheltering a man on the lam: For seven years it allowed WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to hole up in its embassy in London, invoking an international treaty that makes diplomatic premises places of refuge. Then, last week, the South American nation appeared to tear that treaty to shreds, sending the police into the Mexican Embassy in Quito — over Mexico’s protests — where they arrested a former vice president accused of corruption. President Daniel Noboa of Ecuador defended the decision to detain the former vice president, Jorge Glas, calling him a criminal and citing the country’s growing security crisis to justify the move. But his critics said it one of the most egregious violations of the treaty since its creation in 1961. They saw a more personal motive: Mr. Noboa’s political agenda.

Persons: Julian Assange, Daniel Noboa, Jorge Glas Organizations: Quito — Locations: Ecuador, London, American, Mexican, Quito

☆ Ecuadorians wanted an action man. President Noboa has fulfilled that role — embassy raid included
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The President of the Republic of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, during the Spain-Ecuador business meeting at the headquarters of the CEOE, on 25 January, 2024 in Madrid, Spain. "President Noboa has given a strong message to the nation," said Carlos Galecio, a political communications consultant and coordinator of the communications program at Ecuador's Casa Grande University. "I am in favor of President Noboa's actions. "The priority is to clean, sanitize, continue with a process as important as President Noboa's to put the house in order." "The United States takes very seriously the obligation of host countries under international law to respect diplomatic missions," said Brian Nichols, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs.

Persons: Daniel Noboa, Daniel Noboa's, Ecuadorians, Noboa, Carlos Galecio, Rafael Correa, Nayib Bukele, Cedatos, Jorge Glas, Glas, Noboa's, Gabriela Sandoval, Roberto Aspiazu, Will Freeman, Freeman, Brian Nichols Organizations: Ecuadorian, Associated Press, Casa Grande University, Statistics, Police, Vienna Convention, America's Pacific Alliance, Foreign Relations, Mexico's, Jalisco New Generation, United, Western Hemisphere Locations: Republic of Ecuador, Spain, Ecuador, Madrid, Belgium, El Salvador, Quito, Vienna, Mexico, The Hague, Noboa, York, Latin America, Colombia, Peru, Mexico's Sinaloa, Jalisco, U.S, United States

☆ Ecuador’s former vice president hospitalized days after arrest in Mexican embassy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Marlon Sorto | Mitchell Mccluskey | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Ecuador’s former vice president Jorge Glas has been hospitalized, days after his arrest during a high-profile raid of the Mexican embassy in Quito. Glas was taken a hospital in Guayaquil after falling ill, the country’s national prison agency SNAI said Monday. He became ill after he refused to eat food provided to him while in detention, the agency also said. The news came as Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa on Monday defended the controversial police raid on Friday that led to Glas’s arrest. Glas, who has previously been convicted twice on corruption charges, served under leftist ex-President Rafael Correa between 2013 and 2017.

Persons: CNN — Ecuador’s, Jorge Glas, Glas, SNAI, Daniel Noboa, Rafael Correa, ”, Noboa, “, ” Noboa, Argentina –, António Guterres Organizations: CNN, Ministry of Public Health, Naval Hospital of, International Court of Justice, Twitter, Brazil, Vienna Convention, Diplomatic Relations, United Nations Locations: Mexican, Quito, Guayaquil, Naval Hospital of Guayaquil, Mexico, Ecuador, Argentina, Nicaragua, Vienna

☆ Mexico Breaks Diplomatic Ties With Ecuador After Arrest at Embassy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-06 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ecuadorean police officers entered the Mexican embassy in Quito on Friday night to arrest Ecuador’s former vice president who had taken refuge there, prompting Mexico to suspend bilateral relations. Jorge Glas, the former vice president, had been sentenced to prison and there was a warrant out for his arrest before Mexico granted him asylum, Ecuador’s presidential office said in a statement announcing the arrest. Mr. Glas had lived at the embassy since December and was granted political asylum earlier on Friday. The statement said that “no criminal can be considered politically persecuted.”The statement, from the office of President Daniel Noboa, added that the arrest had gone forward because Mexico had abused the immunities and privileges granted to the diplomatic mission and that Mr. Glas’s asylum was given “contrary to the conventional legal framework.”Shortly after the arrest, Mexico’s president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, issued a statement saying that the arrest was a “flagrant violation of international law and the sovereignty of Mexico,” and that the Ecuadorean police had entered the embassy forcibly.

Persons: Ecuador’s, Jorge Glas, Glas, Daniel Noboa, Andrés Manuel López Obrador Locations: Quito, Mexico

☆ Ecuador’s youngest mayor shot dead, police say
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Heather Law | David Shortell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Ecuador’s youngest mayor, 27-year-old Brigitte García, was found shot dead Sunday morning, the country’s national police said. Garcia was the youngest mayor in the country, according to her X profile. She was the youngest mayor of the country,” he added, along with a photo that showed him and García embracing. A memorial for García is planned for Monday afternoon, according to the San Vicente municipality. Ecuadorian police and people gather at the scene where Ecuador's youngest mayor, Brigitte Garcia was found shot dead in a car, according to the police, near San Vicente, Ecuador, in this handout image released on March 24, 2024.

Persons: CNN —, Brigitte García, García, Jairo Loor, Garcia, Rafael Correa, Brigitte, Brigitte Garcia, José Adolfo Macías, ’, Daniel Noboa, Correa Organizations: CNN, Ecuadorian Ministry of Government, State, Ecuadorian, San, National Police, Reuters, Citizen Revolution Party Locations: San Vicente, San Vicente municipality, Ecuador, Reuters Ecuador, Guayaquil

☆ Ecuador’s drug kingpin José Adolfo ‘Fito’ Macías lived ‘like a king’ while locked up. His jailbreak shines a light on the country’s lawless prisons
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Tara John | David Culver | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Macías’ prison cell is seen in these videos filmed by members of the military last year. Los Choneros and their main rival, Los Lobos, are believed to be allied with Mexican drug cartels in a war for dominance over Ecuador’s drug trade. Los Lobos saw an opening amid a violent power struggle in Los Choneros when Macías became its leader in 2020, say experts. In a music video shared online last year, the Los Choneros leader can be seen petting a rooster, apparently inside Guayaquil prison complex. But the press secretary of Ecuador’s president reckons the Los Choneros leader was told about an impending prison transfer.

Persons: José Adolfo Macías, Adolfo Macias, Fito, ”, Pablo Escobar, Macías, ” Jean Paul Pinto, Glaeldys, Julio Cesar Ballesteros, SNAI, Lenín Moreno, Ballesteros, Diana Salazar, “, ” Jeremy McDermott, it’s, Choneros, González, Mariachi Bravo, Macías ’, Michelle, Bravo, Fito ’, Daniel Noboa, Noboa, Patricia Bullrich, reckons, ” Roberto Izurieta, jailbreak, Fabricio Colón Pico, Ecuador’s Organizations: CNN, Ecuadorean, Forces, Ecuadorean Armed Forces, AFP, roosters, Prisons, Crisis, Los, Los Lobos, US Treasury Department, Ecuavisa, Marriott, Argentina’s, Argentine, Teleamazonas, Police Locations: La Regional, Colombian, Latin America, Ecuadorian, Ecuador, Colombia, SNAI, America, Americas, Los Lobos, Mexican, Choneros, Guayaquil, Guayaquil –, Argentine, Córdoba, Argentina, CNN Ecuador

☆ Terrorized by Gangs, Ecuador Embraces the Hard-Line ‘Noboa Way’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Annie Correal | Federico Rios | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Since Ecuador’s president declared war on gangs last month, soldiers with assault rifles have flooded the streets of Guayaquil, a sprawling Pacific Coast city that has been an epicenter of the nation’s yearslong descent into violence. They pull men from buses and cars looking for drugs, weapons and gang tattoos, and patrol roads enforcing a nighttime curfew. Yet when people see soldiers pass, many clap or give them a thumbs-up. “We applaud the iron fist, we celebrate it,” said Guayaquil’s mayor, Aquiles Álvarez. “It has helped bring peace.”In early January, Guayaquil was hit by a wave of violence that could prove to be a turning point in the country’s long-running security crisis: Gangs attacked the city after the authorities moved to take charge of Ecuador’s prisons, which gangs largely controlled.

Persons: “, ”, Aquiles Organizations: Guayaquil’s Locations: Guayaquil, Pacific Coast, Ecuador

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) —A diplomatic rift between Ecuador and Russia appeared to intensify over the weekend after the European nation decided to ban some imports of bananas from Ecuador. The two countries have been at loggerheads recently after Ecuador decided to transfer some of its old Russian military equipment to the United States, in exchange for $200 million in new military gear. Ecuador is the world’s leading banana exporter, with sales worth around $3.5 billion in 2022. Photos You Should See View All 45 ImagesRussia’s decision to ban some banana imports came after President Daniel Noboa announced in January that Ecuador would transfer several tons of old Russian-made military equipment to the United States. Russia’s foreign ministry protested Noboa’s decision, saying that it violated a contract which stipulated that Ecuador could not sell the equipment to third parties without Russia’s consent.

Persons: Daniel Noboa, Noboa, Noboa’s, Carlos Estarellas, ” Estarellas, Richard Salazar, ACORBANEC, ”, Russia’s, “, ” Salazar, hadn’t Locations: QUITO, Ecuador, Russia, loggerheads, United States, Ecuadorian

☆ In El Salvador, self-styled ‘world’s coolest dictator’ Nayib Bukele heads for re-election amid human rights concerns
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Stefano Pozzebon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

Employees of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal load boxes containing electoral material for the presidential and legislative elections at the Electoral Organization Directorate in San Marcos, El Salvador, on February 2, 2024. He adopted Bitcoin as legal tender in El Salvador in 2021 and invited the tech-bros of the world to surf in the Pacific. Under Bukele, El Salvador’s homicide rate has plummeted. So, while El Salvador no longer faces record murder rates, it now boasts the highest incarceration rate in the world. Camilo Freedman/AFP/Getty ImagesA tale of two victimsJackelyne Zelaya does not see the enduring state of emergency as a problem.

Persons: Jocelyn Zelaya, ”, Jackelyne, ” Jackelyne Zelaya, Marcela, Jocelyn, Mara Salvatrucha, Zelaya, “, isn’t, Nayib, Yuri Cortez, Bukele, El, Camilo Freedman, Jackelyne Zelaya, won’t, Maria, tipster, Marvin Reyes, EFE, Guillermo Villatoro, Villatoro, Salvadorean Sandra Hernandez, Jose Dimas Medrano, Stringer, ‘, ’, Ilhan Omar, Samuel Rodriguez of MOVIR, “ Bukele, Daniel Noboa, Latinobarometro, she’s, Maria ’, ” Maria Organizations: CNN, World Bank, El, Employees, Electoral, Getty, FMLN, Civil, Justice Department, Army, “, Congress, Police, National Police, Security Ministry, Human Rights, Democratic, Barrios, Washington DC Locations: San Salvador, Zelaya, El Salvador, American, San Marcos, AFP, America, Latin America, United States, New York, El Salvador’s, Santa Ana, El Rosario, Honduras, WOLA, Washington, Ecuador, El

☆ Ecuador to Begin Cutting Fuel Subsidies in Q2
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

Noboa wants the measures to help finance his military offensive against criminal gangs, which he has designated as terrorist groups. "We agree with targeting subsidies," Noboa said in an interview with Ecuavisa, a local television channel. Subsidies will be removed gradually from gasoline, he said, adding that domestic gas and diesel will not be affected by the change. Last year Ecuador expected to allocate more than $2.6 billion of its budget to fuel subsidies. The government is looking for foreign investment to build a diesel refining system in Ecuador and improve the electrical grid to make eliminating the subsidies sustainable, Noboa said.

Persons: Alexandra Valencia, Daniel Noboa, Noboa, Ecuavisa, Oliver Griffin, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Alexandra Valencia QUITO, National Assembly, ITT Locations: Ecuador

☆ Ecuador: As terror grips the streets, even the armed forces live in fear
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( David Culver | Abel Alvarado | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Suddenly, residents, including Camille and Diego, found themselves seeking a safe place for themselves and their loved ones. Ecuadorean Police/Handout via ReutersHours after terror broke out in Guayaquil, President Daniel Noboa took an unprecedented step. Noboa, who had only been inaugurated two months earlier, declared an “internal armed conflict” in the country and ordered Ecuador’s armed forces to “neutralize” the members of more than 20 gangs, which he labeled as terror groups. Since then, Ecuador’s national police and armed forces have been carrying out raids of homes of those with suspected ties to terror groups. Experts warn that Ecuador’s terror groups are aligned with a wider criminal network, including the notorious Sinaloa Cartel out of Mexico, complicating Noboa’s attempts to “neutralize” criminal groups operating within his borders.

Persons: Ecuador CNN — Camille Gamarra, Diego Gallardo, Camille, Diego, “, ’ ” Camille, ” Camille, – José Adolfo Macías, ” –, Jose Adolfo Macias, Daniel Noboa, they’ve, ”, Jaime Vela Erazo, Fito, Sean Walker, Noboa, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, It’s, Carlos Jimenez, ” Jimenez, Jimenez, he’s, “ I’ve, I’ve, “ I’m, Noboa’s, Cesar Suarez Organizations: Ecuador CNN, Ecuadorean Police, Handout, Reuters, CNN, Joint Command, Ecuador’s Armed Forces, Colombian, RCN, Residents, TC Television Locations: Guayaquil, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, United States, Europe, Sinaloa, Mexico, Aire, Golfo

☆ Opinion | When Chaos Erupted in Ecuador, Disinformation Followed
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Iván Ulchur-Rota | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

One of the most terrifying spates of violence in Ecuador’s modern history began on Jan. 7. In quick succession, two jailed gang leaders escaped, riots broke out in the country’s main prisons and bombs exploded in several cities. Watching the chaos unfold on their phones and televisions, Ecuadoreans were gripped by an unfamiliar fear. The streets of Guayaquil, the largest city, and Quito, the capital, were nearly empty as citizens were advised to stay home. As all of these frightening and very real events occurred, an overwhelming flood of disinformation on social media further disoriented the nation.

Persons: Daniel Noboa, Fernando Villavicencio Locations: Guayaquil, Quito, Ecuador

☆ Ecuador Police Capture Leader of Colombian Dissident Rebel Group
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuador's police on Monday said they have captured the leader of Colombian armed group Oliver Sinisterra and that Ecuadorean authorities will return him to Colombia. News of the capture comes amid a military offensive launched by Ecuador's government to combat criminal gangs. "An immigration hearing will be held so that he can be expelled from Ecuador and sent to Colombia," Ecuador police commander Cesar Zapata told reporters. Oliver Sinisterra is a faction of the Segunda Marquetalia group of dissident rebels of the now-demobilized Revolutionary Forces of Colombia (FARC) which abandoned a 2016 peace deal with the state. The Oliver Sinisterra front operates in Colombia's Narino province and Ecuador's Esmeraldas province.

Persons: Oliver Sinisterra, Daniel Noboa, Carlos L, El Gringo, Cesar Zapata, Zapata, Alexandra Valencia, Luis Jaime Acosta, Oliver Griffin, Marguerita Choy Organizations: Colombian, Segunda Marquetalia, Revolutionary Forces of Locations: QUITO, Colombian, Colombia, Imbabura, Ecuador, San Lorenzo, Revolutionary Forces of Colombia, Colombia's Narino, Ecuador's Esmeraldas

☆ Ecuadorean Prosecutor Killed by Gang, Two Arrested -Police
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Yury Garcia and Alexandra ValenciaGUAYAQUIL/QUITO (Reuters) -Two suspects have been arrested in connection with the murder of Ecuadorean prosecutor Cesar Suarez who was allegedly targeted by a gang, police said on Thursday, as security forces continued interventions in prisons. Incidents this month have included an attack by armed gunmen on the TC television station, the hostage-taking of more than 200 prison staff and the kidnapping of police officers. Suarez was in charge of investigating the television station attack, when journalists and others were briefly held hostage, as well as cases connected to corruption and drug trafficking, Herrera said. Police detained 13 people, including two minors, in connection with the television station attack. Ecuadorean bonds continued to rise on Thursday on views the crisis could become a catalyst for policy action.

Persons: Yury Garcia, Alexandra Valencia, Cesar Suarez, Daniel Noboa, Suarez, Victor Herrera, Herrera, Adolfo Macias, Ecuadorean, Rodrigo Campos, Julia Symmes Cobb Organizations: Alexandra, Alexandra Valencia GUAYAQUIL, TC, Police, Security Locations: QUITO, Ecuador, Guayas province, Guayaquil, America, Quito, New YorkWriting

☆ Organized Crime Prosecutor in Ecuador's Guayas Killed-AG's Office
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuadorean prosecutor Cesar Suarez, who focused on pursuing organized trans-national crime in Guayas province, one of the country's most violent areas and the site of an on-air attack on a television station last week, has been killed, the attorney general said on Wednesday. In response President Daniel Noboa declared a 60-day state of emergency, including a nighttime curfew, and designated 22 criminal groups as terrorist organizations. "The criminals, the terrorists, will not hold back our commitment to Ecuadorean society," attorney general Diana Salazar said in a video posted to social media. "We call on the forces of order to guarantee the security of those who are carrying out their duties." Her office was conducting a preliminary investigation at the site of the killing, Salazar said, expressing her grief for Suarez's family but giving no further details about the crime.

Persons: Cesar Suarez, Daniel Noboa, Diana Salazar, Salazar, Alexandra Valencia, Julia Symmes Cobb Organizations: TC Television Locations: QUITO, Guayas province, Ecuador, Guayaquil

☆ Cesar Suarez: Ecuadorean prosecutor investigating TV station attack has been assassinated, attorney general says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Tara John | Abel Alvarado | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —An Ecuadorean prosecutor, who was reportedly leading an investigation into an attack on a local TV network, was assassinated on Wednesday in Guayaquil, according to Ecuador’s Attorney General Diana Salazar. Cesar Suarez was killed in the northern part of the city, known for being one of the most violent cities in the country. The TV station attack led Noboa to declare an “internal armed conflict” in the country, ordering security forces to “neutralize” several criminal groups accused of spreading extreme violence in the Latin American nation. Since then, Ecuadorian military and police have spread throughout the city of Guayaquil, a CNN team on the ground witnessed. This comes as rival criminal organizations fuel Ecuador’s worsening security situation in their battle to control drug trafficking routes.

Persons: Diana Salazar, Cesar Suarez, Salazar, Suarez, “, ” Salazar, ”, Daniel Noboa, Adolfo “ Fito ” Macias, Oliver, Noboa, “ Leo Organizations: CNN, Ecuavisa, TC Television, United, Ecuadorian, Ecuador’s Armed Forces Locations: Guayaquil, Guayas, Ecuadorian, Ecuador, Fito, Mexico, United States, Sinaloa, Colombia, Los Tiguerones, Victoria del, “, Peru, Europe

☆ Ecuador Cracks Down on Prisons to Restore Order After Hostage Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuador's police and military on Sunday were aiming to restore order inside the country's dangerous prisons where dozens of staff were held hostage by inmates amid an uptick in violence in the Andean nation. Images on social media shared by Ecuadorean armed forces showed shirtless prisoners on their knees with hands on their heads as armed soldiers entered the seven jails that were the scenes of a hostage crisis that ended Saturday evening. Security forces were conducting searches and regaining control of the prisons, the military said. We are doing so in a very calm manner," Norman Cano, police chief at the Esmeraldas prison, said on social media. The hostages, which the SNAI prison agency previously said were 158 guards and 20 administrative staffers, were held since last Monday in at least seven prisons before they were freed.

Persons: Norman Cano, Daniel Noboa's, Alexandra Valencia, Cassandra Garrison, Mark Porter Organizations: Security Locations: QUITO

CNN —Nearly 900 people have been arrested in Ecuador since Tuesday in a national security operation to stop an outburst of gang violence, Ecuador’s presidency said. The presidency says 94 of the 859 people detained are members of what they call “terrorist” groups. Ecuador has been rocked by blasts, police kidnappings and prison disturbances in a wave of violence beginning with the prison escape of one of Ecuador’s most powerful drug lords last weekend. The violence was triggered by the escape of high-profile gang leader Adolfo “Fito” Macías from a prison in Guayaquil on Sunday. Following Fito’s escape and the declaration, Ecuador’s prison agency reported incidents in at least six prisons in different provinces on Sunday.

Persons: Ecuador’s, Daniel Noboa, Noboa, ” Noboa, Adolfo “ Fito, CNN’s Jack Guy Organizations: CNN, Ecuadorian, Sunday Locations: Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, Guayaquil, ”, United States, Europe

☆ All prison staff held hostage by inmates in Ecuador now free, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-13 | by ( Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —All prison guards and administrative employees held hostage by inmates at correctional facilities across Ecuador have now been freed, the national prisons agency said Saturday night. Earlier on Saturday it had said 133 guards and three administrative employees were still being held after at least 41 were released. Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa welcomed the news and congratulated SNAI, the armed forces and the national police for securing their release. The agency had also reported an armed confrontation at a prison in the southern region of El Oro between inmates and members of the armed forces and the National Police. More than 3,000 police officers and members of the armed forces have been deployed to find him.

Persons: Daniel Noboa, SNAI, Jorge Rendon, ”, Rafael Correa, Adolfo “ Fito, Oliver, Fito, Fernando Villavicencio, Rodrigo Buendia, Villavicencio Organizations: CNN, Ecuadorian, National Police, Catholic, Security, Authorities, Getty Locations: Ecuador, Esmeraldas, El Oro, ”, Peru, Colombia, Guayaquil, Fito, Mexico, United States, Sinaloa, AFP, Quito

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