FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The Ecuadorian government has deployed more than 75,000 police and soldiers to four provinces in the country where gang violence is most intense, the news was confirmed by Ecuador's Interior Ministry.
The operation includes the provinces of El Oro, Guayas, Los Ríos and Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, where authorities have also imposed a nighttime curfew to restrict the movement of citizens and strengthen security control.
Interior Minister John Reimberg called on residents of these areas to respect security measures.
"We are at war," he declared, urging citizens to stay home and avoid risks during security operations.
According to the BBC, since taking office in November 2023, President Daniel Noboa has taken several measures to combat drug-related violence. However, Ecuador recorded a record number of murders in 2025.
Authorities report that the murder rate has increased by more than 30 percent between 2024 and 2025, despite repeated declarations of a state of emergency and operations against criminal organizations.
Ecuador's geographical location, between Colombia and Peru, two of the world's largest cocaine producers, has made the country a key transit point for drug trafficking. It is estimated that around 70 percent of the cocaine produced in these two countries passes through Ecuadorian territory.
Meanwhile, last week the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) opened its first office in Ecuador, as part of joint operations against drug trafficking.
President Noboa also joined a 17-nation alliance led by the United States aimed at combating criminal cartels in the Western Hemisphere. At an international meeting held at Mar-a-Lago, former US President Donald Trump compared criminal gangs to “a cancer” and called on countries in the region to use military force to eradicate them.
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