• Source:JND
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Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa on Monday proclaimed an emergency for 60 days after the country's most-wanted prisoner escaped from jail. President Noboa also ordered the army to take action against 20 drug trafficking gangs classified as terrorist groups.  

“I have just signed a state of emergency decree so that the Armed Forces have all the political and legal support for their actions,” said Noboa. 

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“The time is over when drug trafficking convicts, hitmen and organized crime dictate to the government what to do,” he added.

Fito’s escape and riots in jails:

The country's dreaded criminal Fito, whose real name is Adolfo Macías Villamar, escaped from the prison after riots broke out in at least six jails on Monday. Inmates reportedly took control and held many officials hostage. Besides, many police personnel were also abducted by the miscreants after the President sounded an emergency. The unrest was sparked after Fito’s escape. 

When jail officials came to shift Fito to another jail on Sunday morning, they found him missing. As per government spokesman Roberto Izurieta, cited by the BBC, Fito was tipped off about his forthcoming transfer to another jail. He is believed to have absconded hours before his transfer. Two prison guards have been detained on suspicion of facilitating Fito’s escape.   

Armed Miscreants Storm TV studio:

Amid a state of emergency in Ecuador, a live television broadcast was interrupted by armed men on Tuesday with gunshots and yelling heard on a live feed, as President Daniel Noboa issued a decree declaring 22 gangs as terrorist organizations. Video of the incident, which took place at the state-owned TC Television, went viral on social media. In the video, the armed men, mostly dressed in black, were seen wielding guns and accosting huddled staffers before the feed cut out.

Ecuador’s deteriorating security: 

Security in Ecuador has been collapsing since the country was hit by the Covid pandemic, which battered its economy. 

Violent deaths nationally rose to 8,008 in 2023, the government has said, nearly double the 2022 figure of over 4,500, Reuters reported. The assassination of an anti-corruption candidate marred Ecuador's presidential contest last year. The government blames the situation on the growing reach of cocaine-trafficking gangs, which have destabilized swathes of the continent.  

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Taking advantage of the state’s weak control, several gangs are orchestrating the violence in the prisons, resulting in hundreds of deaths.