The army's intervention in Guayaquil's Litoral prison after Fito's disappearance
The most “spectacular” attack occurred at the TC headquarters in Guayaquil when a commando raided the studio during a live broadcast. All of Ecuador saw on its screens the gang's young narcos taking hostages and threatening the staff present, accompanied by a public proclamation: “This is what happens when mafias are provoked.”. The “conquest” of Tc – which ended two hours later, on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, with a police raid, no injuries and the arrest of the criminals, was, however, symbolically the advanced point of a spate of attacks in which im At least thirteen people were killed across the country and seven police officers were kidnapped. Less than two miles from the besieged television station, one gang attacked the university and another set fire to a row of cars in the center as a frightened crowd tried to flee. A total of 29 buildings in the country's economic capital were attacked by the gangs, including five hospitals. Yesterday, a pedestrian bridge over the Pan-American Highway was blown up in Quito, three attacks with as many car bombs were thwarted, and numerous shops in the south were looted. In six prisons, prisoners rebelled and kidnapped around a hundred guards. Faced with the wave of chaos, public offices in major cities were evacuated, citizens were urged to stay at home and work smart, classes were moved online, and shops and shopping centers were closed. In fact, Bishop Antonio Crameri in Esmeraldas called for the suspension of masseslike during Covid.
The “chain reaction” was triggered by the announcement of the newly elected Daniel Noboa that he wanted to put an end to the security crisis of recent years caused by the infiltration of Mexican mafias. His $800 million “Plan Fénix” – plus $200 million in aid from the US – calls for new intelligence units, tactical weapons for the security forces and, above all, new high-security institutions, including “prison ships” anchored 120 kilometers from the coast where the Bosses would have been chained. First on the list was Adolfo Macías aka “Fito,” the head of Los Choneros, the armed wing of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel. However, on the day of the transfer – Sunday – “Fito” disappeared. The following day, his rival Fabricio Colón Pico, alias “Captain Pico,” fled and led Los Lobos, the local cell of the “Jalisco nueva generación” cartel.. The government's declaration of a state of emergency and a night-time curfew triggered a violent reaction from the gangs. However, Noboa did not give up. In fact, he rebooted and declared the “internal conflict”. A specific regulation of international humanitarian law that provides for strict requirements – prolonged conflicts and structured armed organizations – and allows the use of the army. The president has already given the green light to military operations to “neutralize” 22 criminal groups defined as “terrorists.”
Abjuring judges and agents are registered in the same category. In addition, 1,500 foreign prisoners will be repatriated to their respective countries in the coming weeks. Mdrastic measures – supported by Parliament – that are causing concern among experts and activists because, as Latin America's recent history teaches, they risk giving free rein to abuses and atrocities. In addition, the recipe, already tested elsewhere, often risks worsening the problem instead of solving it. Mexico document. In addition to the cross-party solidarity of political forces within the country, the Ecuadorian government has also received that of other leaders in the region, regardless of their political stripe. The continent's nations fear the destabilizing effects of turning Ecuador into a new base of operations for powerful multinational drug trafficking companies, especially neighboring Colombia and Peru. Its proximity to the world's most important coca producers – along with Bolivia – and the Pacific from which it can be exported make the country particularly attractive in the eyes of the mafia. Washington, which offered help, also expressed “extreme concern.” Even UN Secretary-General Antônio Guterres said he was “very concerned about the deterioration of the situation”, while EU High Commissioner Josep Borrell denounced the “direct attack on democracy” through crime.
Meanwhile, Colombia has declared its willingness to accept all 1,500 prisoners of Colombian nationality that Ecuador's President Noboa has announced he will deport to their country of origin in order to at least partially ease tensions in prisons that are leading to protests and mutinies. “We are – explained the Colombian Minister of Justice Néstor Osuna – fully ready to cooperate in a situation that could have a humanitarian character, that is, that Colombians convicted and imprisoned in Ecuador will serve the remainder of their sentence in a prison close to their family environment can serve.” » . Noboa announced this measure towards prisoners of Colombian origin, clarifying that a similar initiative will also be taken for Peruvian and Venezuelan citizens imprisoned in Ecuador. Finally, Osuna pointed out that the aim will be to ensure that people convicted of crimes by the Ecuadorian justice system actually serve the remaining part of the sentence imposed in their country and are not released instead.