Ecuador is suffering a wave of attacks and “terrorist acts” in different parts of the country. As a consequence, the Ecuadorian president, Daniel Noboa, decreed last Monday a state of emergency throughout the country and has declared an “internal armed conflict.”

Internal armed conflict

Executive Decree 111 recognizes the existence of an internal armed conflict and The deployment of the Armed Forces is arranged to fight against the current situation of insecurity.

The spiral of violence unleashed by the activity of “narcoterrorist” groups has left at least 10 dead, including two Ecuadorian National Police officers, and three have been injured.

day of terror

Ecuador experienced a day of terror this Tuesday with the simultaneous attack by armed groups that frightened the population and attacked shopping centers, took to the streets and broke into – while broadcasting live – on a television channel in Guayaquil, the country’s second city. become the epicenter of attacks by organized crime groups.

Prison crisis

Previously, on Monday night, Noboa had declared a state of emergency and curfew for sixty days, following the “disappearance” a day before of Adolfo Macías, alias ‘Fito’, the dangerous leader of the Los Choneros criminal gang, and that riots broke out in six prisons in the country. The escape occurred when the Government was planning to transfer Macías to a maximum security prison.

Noboa has not appeared in public

Despite the seriousness of the events, which have caused the death of at least 10 people, the President of the Republic, Daniel Noboa – who took office last November – has not appeared in public since broadcasting on Monday night on social networks a video with the declaration of the state of exception and the curfew.

What implications does it have?

The wave of violent acts that are occurring in Ecuador by criminal organizations has, among others, international implications, such as Peru’s decision to declare an emergency on the border. What is happening in Ecuador has caused fear in Peru and has led the Government to declare a state of emergency and order the deployment of the Armed Forces to strengthen the surveillance tasks of the National Police (PNP) throughout the country’s northern border. .

For its part, This Wednesday, the Spanish Embassy in Quito asked Spanish citizens in Ecuador to take extreme precautions and limit their movements. due to the violent incidents that shake the country, especially in Quito and Guayaquil.

Another response has been that of the United States, which has announced the cancellation of all appointments for consular matters in its facilities and the Guayaquil Consulate due to the situation in the country.