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☆ 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

☆ 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

☆ Eleven Prison Guards Held Hostage by Inmates in Ecuador Freed
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-13 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

By Alexandra ValenciaQUITO (Reuters) -Eleven prison staff members who had been held by inmates at the Esmeraldas prison in Ecuador were freed on Saturday, police said. They were among 158 guards and 20 administrative staffers taken hostage since Monday in at least seven prisons amid a sharp increase in violence in the South American country. Eight other prison staff had been freed before Saturday, officials said. Ecuador is grappling with a security crisis that worsened this week with the on-air storming of a TV station, the hostage-taking of dozens of prison staff by inmates and the kidnapping of police officers. (Reporting by Alexandra Valencia, writing by Cassandra Garrison;Editing by Alistair Bell and Will Dunham)

Persons: Alexandra Valencia, Daniel Noboa's, Cassandra Garrison, Alistair Bell, Will Dunham Organizations: Alexandra Valencia QUITO Locations: Ecuador

☆ 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

☆ Ecuador election: assassinations cast a grim shadow as country selects a new president
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Tara John | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Nearly 100,000 troops will be dispatched to ensure public safety and order across Ecuador on election day, Ecuador’s government says. Friends, family members and supporters of Ecuadorean presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio attend a tribute at Quito Exhibition Center. Henry Romero/ReutersEverything to play forAnything could happen in Sunday’s presidential vote, say analysts, who point to the killing of Villavicencio as potentially changing voters’ preferences. Journalist and presidential candidate Christian Zurita gestures next to his running mate, vice presidential candidate Andrea Gonzalez (R), in Quito on August 13, 2023. Ecuador presidential candidate Yaku Perez looks on as he arrives to participate in a presidential debate, in Quito, Ecuador August 13, 2023.

Persons: CNN —, Fernando Villavicencio, Otto Sonnenholzner, Guillermo Lasso, Henry Romero, ”, Laura Lizarazo, “, Glaeldys González, …, Pedro Briones, Luisa González, Rafael Correa, Lizarazo, Rodrigo Buendia, Correa, González, Villavicencio, Christian Zurita, Andrea Gonzalez, Martin Bernetti, Moreno, Erika Paredes, Marcos Pin, ” Lizarazo, Yaku, Yaku Perez, Karen Toro, El, Nayib Bukele –, Bukele, Jan, Vicente Gaibor del Pino Organizations: CNN, Quito Exhibition Center, Reuters, ”, Crisis, Movimiento, Getty, CNN En, Construye’s, Alianza Actuemos Locations: Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, United States, Guayaquil, Esmeraldas province, Quito, AFP, Belgium, Samborondon

Gonzalez is set to face the surprise second-place finisher Daniel Noboa in a run-off election in October, according to the National Electoral Council of Ecuador (CNE), as neither candidate won more than 50% of the ballot. Ecuador presidential candidate Daniel Noboa makes remarks as he arrives to participate in a presidential debate on August 13. Crime has topped the agenda of this year’s presidential race, which was punctuated by the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, an outspoken anti-corruption journalist. Gunfire interrupted Noboa’s caravan on Thursday as he was traveling in Guayas province, but authorities say the presidential candidate was not the target of the incident. But the winner of October’s run-off vote will have relatively little time to work on a solution.

Persons: CNN — Luisa González, Gonzalez, Daniel Noboa, Ecuadorians, Diana Atamaint, González, Rafael Correa –, Álvaro Noboa –, Guillermo Lasso, Karen Toro, Fernando Villavicencio, Pedro Briones, Christian Zurita, October’s Organizations: CNN, Movimiento Revolución, Sunday, Electoral, Accion Democratica Nacional, Electoral Council Locations: Ecuador, Belgium, Esmeraldas province, Guayas, Quito, Russia, Ukraine, China, Bangladesh

☆ Ecuador election: political violence and insecurity loom large as Ecuadorians get ready to vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Rafael Romo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

It has also brought international attention to the powerful criminal organizations driving the violence that has plagued Ecuador. “By the very fact that we’re not controlling our borders, we’re getting an influx of money that is literally corrupting the country,” Topic added. Topic told CNN that while he admires Bukele, he would be more careful when it comes to respecting human rights. Andrea González Náder – who was Villavicencio’s running mate – told CNN that the fight against criminal gangs and corruption was Villavicencio’s main objective when he was alive. Those aims have not changed, she told CNN from a secret location in Ecuador, which police asked CNN not to reveal for her protection.

Persons: Ecuador CNN — Gissella Cecibel Molina doesn’t, Fernando Villavicencio, Fernando, ” Molina, ‘ Fernando Villavicencio, ’, ”, Molina, “, Villavicencio, Juan Zapata, Fernando Villavicencio's assasination, Karen Toro, Pedro Briones, Agustin Intriago, Walker Vera, Pity Guzman, Rodrigo Buendia, Bukele, doesn’t, Andrea González Náder –, –, Martin Bernetti, Luisa González, Rafael Correa, “ I’ve, Gustavo Petro Organizations: Ecuador CNN, National Assembly, CNN, “, Reuters, Manta, Ecuadorian National Police, United Nations Office, Drug, Getty, French Foreign Legion, Electoral Council, Citizen Revolution Movement, European, Colombian, Zetas Locations: Quito, Ecuador, Ecuador’s, “, Esmeraldas province, Muisne, South America, United States, Europe, Colombia, Mexico, Balkans, AFP, Ecuadorian, European Union

☆ Ecuador awaits funeral for assassinated presidential candidate
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

QUITO, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Supporters of assassinated Ecuadorean presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio have been hosting gatherings in his memory and waiting to see whether his family on Friday will give details of plans for his funeral. Villavicencio's body was released to two family representatives, including his lawyer, on Thursday, according to the attorney general's office. Some family members are believed to be outside Ecuador and traveling back for the funeral. Ecuadorean presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio waves an Ecuadorian flag as he attends a rally in Quito, Ecuador August 9, 2023. Violence in Ecuador has surged in recent years, especially in cities along drug-trafficking routes like Guayaquil and Esmeraldas where citizens say they live in fear.

Persons: Ecuadorean, Fernando Villavicencio, Villavicencio's, Villavicencio, Rafael Correa, Luisa Gonzalez, Correa, Guillermo Lasso, Lasso, Karen Toro, Alexandra Valencia, Julia Symmes Cobb, David Gregorio Our Organizations: Albanian mafia, REUTERS, Albanian, Thomson Locations: QUITO, American, Ecuador, Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca, Esmeraldas

☆ Ecuador prison violence leaves at least 11 dead
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Alexandra Valencia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The forensic effort at the Penitenciaría del Litoral prison is continuing to determine the official death toll, Cesar Zapata, the police director of citizen security and public order told journalists. This week's latest surge of prison violence comes during campaigning for Aug. 20 elections, with some presidential candidates pledging prison reforms. More than 100 prison officers held in jails around the country were freed on Tuesday, and SNAI said prisoners had lifted hunger strikes held at some facilities. The 2,700 soldiers and police officers who entered the Penitenciaria del Litoral prison confiscated high-caliber weapons including grenade launchers, drugs, cell phones and bullet-proof vests. The disturbances led President Guillermo Lasso to declare a 60-day state of emergency for the country's prisons and allow the military to help retake control.

Persons: Cesar Zapata, Zapata, SNAI, Guillermo Lasso, Lasso, Alexandra Valencia, Julia Symmes Cobb, Sandra Maler Organizations: Thomson Locations: QUITO, Guayaquil, Esmeraldas

☆ Two dead in gang violence at Ecuador prison after inmate transfers
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Alexandra Valencia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Soldiers guard a gate after several inmates were killed in fights between gangs, in Guayaquil, Ecuador November 2, 2022. REUTERS/Santiago ArcosQUITO, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Fighting between gangs at Ecuador's most violent prison has killed at least two people, prisons agency SNAI said on Wednesday, on the heels of attacks against police over prisoner transfers. The transfers are an attempt to reduce overcrowding and improve conditions for inmates, SNAI has said. Lasso has repeatedly accused drug gangs of using violence - including inside prisons - to retaliate against his government's efforts to combat them. Ecuador's prison system has faced structural problems for decades, but jail violence has soared since late 2020, killing at least 400 people and terrorizing inmates' families.

☆ Five police killed in Ecuador; state of emergency declared
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Alexandra Valencia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Vicente Gaibor del PinoQUITO, Nov 1 (Reuters) - At least five Ecuadorean police officers were killed on Tuesday in explosive attacks in response to prisoner transfers from overcrowded and violent penitentiaries, prompting President Guillermo Lasso to declare a state of emergency in two provinces. He declared a state of emergency in Guayas and Esmeraldas provinces, where security forces will intensify operations and a curfew will come into force from 9 p.m. local time. Three other officers were killed in the city and nearby later in the day, the police said on Twitter. Three explosions were reported in Esmeraldas and seven prison officers were taken hostage by inmates in protest of prisoner transfers. read moreSNAI said 515 prisoners had so far been transferred from Guayaquil's Penitenciaria, Ecuador's most violent prison, to others around the country.

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