On Tuesday, during a live broadcast, masked men broke into a public electricity channel in Ecuador, brandishing guns and explosives, and issued a decree declaring that the South American country had entered an "internal armed conflict."
The men, armed with pistols and something resembling explosive sticks, entered the TC television network in the port city of Guayaquil and shouted that they had bombs. A sound similar to a gunshot can be heard in the background. It is not known if the station staff were injured.
There has been a series of attacks in Ecuador, including the kidnapping of several police officers after a powerful gang leader escaped from prison on Sunday. **Daniel Noboa said on Monday that he would declare a national state of emergency, a measure that allows authorities to suspend people's rights and mobilize the army in places such as prisons.
Shortly after the gunmen attacked the television station, Noboa issued a decree classifying 20 drug gangs operating in the country as terrorist organizations and authorizing the Ecuadorian military to "eliminate" them within the framework of international humanitarian law.
The chief of the Ecuadorian National Police announced shortly afterwards that the authorities had arrested all the masked intruders. Police Commander Cesar Zapata told reporters that the gunman was carrying a firearm and explosives were seized. He did not disclose how many people**.
"This kind of behavior should be considered a terrorist act," Zapata said. ”
* How many attacks have occurred since it was announced on Sunday that the leader of the Los Gioneros gang, Adolfo Macias (pseudonym "Fito"), had disappeared from his cell in a low-security prison. He was scheduled to be transferred to a maximum-security facility that day.
Authorities also did not reveal who was behind the attacks, which included an incident near the residence of the president of the National Court and the kidnapping of four police officers on Monday night, or whether they considered the actions to be coordinated.
* One police officer was kidnapped in the capital, Quito, and three officers were kidnapped in the city of Quevedo, according to the report.
* Members of the main drug trafficking gang have previously been accused of carrying out similar attacks. In recent years, Ecuador has been plunged into a spike in drug-trafficking-related violence, including ** and kidnappings.
The whereabouts of Macias are unknown. Prosecutors opened an investigation and charged two prison guards with allegedly escaping, but neither the Corrections System nor the Federal Authority confirmed whether the prisoner had escaped from the facility or may have been hiding there.
In February 2013, he escaped from a heavily guarded facility, but was captured a few weeks later.
On Monday, Noboa issued a national emergency order for 60 days, allowing authorities to suspend rights and mobilize troops in places such as prisons. **There is also a curfew from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Nobora posted on Instagram that he would not stop until he "brought back peace for all Ecuadorians" and that his ** had decided to fight crime. Hours after Noboa made the announcement, a wave of attacks began.
Noboa's predecessor, Guillermo Lasso, made extensive use of the state of emergency in response to the wave of violence affecting the country.
Macias was convicted of drug trafficking, ** and organized crime and is currently serving 34 years in the La Regional Prison in Puerto Guayaquil.
Los Choneros is one of the gangs that the Ecuadorian authorities believe responsible for the surge in violence, which reached new levels after the assassination of candidate Fernando Villencio last year. According to the authorities, the gang has links to the Mexican Sinaloa drug cartel.