Ecuador president says country is at war as gangs hold prison staff hostage

Over 130 members of staff are being held hostage by inmates in at least five prisons across the country

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FILE PHOTO. Prisoners stand on the roof of the Turi jail where dozens of prison guards and police officers have been kidnapped by the inmates, in Cuenca, Ecuador.
FILE PHOTO. Prisoners stand on the roof of the Turi jail where dozens of prison guards and police officers have been kidnapped by the inmates, in Cuenca, Ecuador.(AP Photo/Xavier Caivinagua)

More than 130 prison guards and other staff are being held hostage by inmates in at least five prisons around Ecuador, which is reeling from an escalation of violence in recent days that its president has called a war.

President Daniel Noboa, who has promised to tackle a growing security problem caused by a rise in drug-trafficking gangs transporting cocaine through Ecuador, on Tuesday named 22 gangs as terrorist organizations, making them official military targets.

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"We are at war and we cannot cede in the face of these terrorist groups," Noboa told radio station Canela Radio.

The hostage-takings, which began in the early hours of Monday, and the apparent escape of Los Choneros gang leader Adolfo Macias from prison over the weekend, spurred Noboa to declare a 60-day state of emergency.

He hardened the decree after a series of explosions around the country and a dramatic takeover of a TV station by gunmen live on air earlier on Tuesday.

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In Ecuador, a group of armed men forcefully entered a live television studio and threatened staff during a live broadcast27a copyright law Israel

The government has said the violence is a reaction to Noboa's plan to build a new high security prison for gang leaders. Ecuador's government, and said on Wednesday it would increase military presence and controls along their nearly 600-kilometer shared border. Colombia's Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Noboa's deportation plan.

Noboa also doubled down on his plans to separate gang leaders from wider prison populations, increase security at ports, and fight corruption, among other measures.

Ecuadorian inmates earlier in September released 57 guards, police held hostage after uprising.

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