- By Kathryn Armstrong
- BBC News
2 hours ago
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The two bomb attacks were aimed at the prison authorities in Ecuador
According to officials, more than 50 prison guards and seven police officers were taken hostage in several prisons in Ecuador.
Two car bombs also exploded in the capital Quito, both aimed at the country’s prison authority (SNAI).
No one was injured in the bombings and at least six people were arrested.
Authorities believe at least one of the incidents may have been in retaliation for a police search for weapons in one of the country’s largest prisons.
Ecuador’s Interior Minister Juan Zapata said the authorities would take action but gave no further details.
“We are concerned for the safety of our officers,” Zapata said.
Hours earlier, a bomb had hit a building in Quito formerly used by the SNAI. The second explosion targeted the agency’s headquarters.
Police said the subsequent attack was carried out using a vehicle equipped with explosives.
Quito Mayor Pabel Munoz said there were also grenade explosions in the city that night.
Ecuador faces increasing violence linked to drug trafficking gangs, putting a huge strain on its underfunded and overcrowded prison system.
Hundreds of prisoners have been killed in deadly fighting in Ecuador’s overcrowded prisons in recent years.
Hundreds of police officers and soldiers conducted a search for weapons and explosives at Cotopaxi prison in the southern city of Latacunga on Wednesday in a bid to prevent further violence.
“The measures we have taken, particularly in the prison system, have provoked violent reactions from criminal organizations that seek to intimidate the state,” said Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso.
“But we stand firm and will not deviate from our goal of catching dangerous criminals, disbanding criminal gangs and bringing peace to the country’s prisons.”
Image source: EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
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Authorities are trying to regain control of prisons following a rise in violence linked to drug trafficking gangs