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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, July 20th 2025 - 23:48 UTC

Tag: Ecuador

  • Tuesday, January 16th 2024 - 11:17 UTC

    Ecuador: 48 prison inmates escape, only 5 recaptured

    One prisoner died during the incidents at the Esmeraldas jailhouse

    Only five of the 48 prison inmates that escaped Monday from the Esmeraldas jailhouse were recaptured later in the day according to sources from Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa's administration quoted by local media.

  • Monday, January 15th 2024 - 10:06 UTC

    Ecuador: Authorities regain control of prisons, free hostages

    One casualty was recorded in the Machala prison, where on Friday night there was a shootout. Photo: José Jácome / EFE

    Ecuador's forces retook control of all the country's prisons and freed some 150 corrections officers who were being held hostage by the rioting inmates, it was reported this past weekend. However, one guard was killed during a shootout in the operation.

  • Saturday, January 13th 2024 - 10:51 UTC

    Ecuador accepts military help from Argentina and the US

    It “is not the moment to say no out of ego or vanity,” Noboa insisted

    Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa Friday said his government would be accepting the military cooperation offered by Argentina and the United States among other countries because the situation did not allow for egos to stand in the way.

  • Friday, January 12th 2024 - 10:31 UTC

    Ecuador: Life slowly getting back to normal

    Some 178 corrections officers are still held hostage by drug-trafficking gangs as authorities massively search for alias Fito

    Ecuadorean authorities Thursday confirmed drug-trafficking gangs continued to have a total of 178 hostages in prisons nationwide while the number of casualties after four days of internal turmoil was updated to 16 as the outlaws retaliated following law enforcement forces operations. In this scenario, daily life is gradually getting back to normal.

  • Thursday, January 11th 2024 - 10:49 UTC

    Ecuador's President promises to be tougher than previous administrations

    Noboa also asked Petro to take care of the nearly 1,500 Colombian inmates in Ecuadorean jails

    Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa underlined Wednesday that “we are at war and I will not give in.” He made those remarks one day after multiple uprisings by drug trafficking groups particularly in Quito and Guayaquil resulted in at least 18 deaths and over 300 arrests, in addition to the people wounded, for which the head of state declared an “internal armed conflict” against terrorist organizations believed to be 20,000 strong.

  • Wednesday, January 10th 2024 - 11:32 UTC

    Eight die as Ecuador's internal crisis escalates

    Men with rifles and grenades raided the studios of TC Television, Guayaquil's public TV station.<br /> <br />

    At least eight people were killed, many others were wounded and scores were arrested as a wave of drug-trafficking gang violence spread throughout Ecuador -specifically in Quito and Guayaquil- on Tuesday, targeting specifically the country's prisons, a TV station, and a university campus, it was reported.

  • Wednesday, January 10th 2024 - 10:54 UTC

    Peru reinforces Ecuadorean border controls

    Otárola announced that “the entire northern border of the country will be declared in emergency.”

    The Peruvian government of President Dina Boluarte Tuesday ordered the deployment of troops and law enforcement forces to the 1,500-kilometer-long border with Ecuador to prevent the violent uprising of drug-trafficking gangs from crossing over, it was reported in Lima.

  • Tuesday, January 9th 2024 - 11:40 UTC

    State of Emergency decreed in Ecuador amid simultaneous prison riots

    The Armed Forces have all the political and legal support in their actions, Noboa said

    Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa Monday decreed a state of emergency after riots erupted in at least six prisons nationwide, with inmates taking guards hostage and starting fires by burning mattresses. The measure allows the Armed Forces to intervene in support of law enforcement agencies.

  • Monday, December 18th 2023 - 09:58 UTC

    Covid-19: First Pirola case confirmed in Ecuador

    According to the WHO, “Pirola” is circulating worldwide and is considered a variant of concern

    Ecuadorian authorities confirmed Sunday the detection of the first case of the so-called Pirola variant (BA.2.86) of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in a woman in Quito, who has been reported to be stable and “receiving outpatient treatment at home,” according to a statement from the Health Ministry, which is carrying out an epidemiological follow-up and monitoring of the patient.

  • Friday, November 24th 2023 - 09:59 UTC

    Ecuador's new president sworn in

    “I have always been a person of few words,” stressed Noboa

    Daniel Noboa, aged 35, was sworn in Thursday as Ecuador's new president during a ceremony at Quito's Legislative Palace. He will be at the helm of this country for 18 months to complete the term of office left unfinished by Guillermo Lasso, who activated the so-called “crossed-death” mechanism to avoid impeachment and called for snap elections.