Violence continues to rise in Ecuador, with nightclubs set on fire and fake bombs

A bomb threat prompted authorities to deploy explosives squads to a busy area of Ecuador’s capital, Quito, on Thursday. Meanwhile, authorities in an eastern city reported a nightclub arson attack that left two people dead amid a surge in violence blamed on drug gangs in the South American country.

Police said they evacuated people from the area around the Playón de la Marín bus station in the capital Quito after they were alerted to a backpack containing explosives believed to have been placed in a trash bin.

Authorities said the backpack did not contain explosives, but they remained vigilant because the incident followed five similar incidents in Ecuador's capital earlier Wednesday with real explosives.

Meanwhile, authorities said unidentified suspects set fire to a nightclub in the city of Coca, killing at least two people and injuring nine others. The fire spread to 11 nearby stores and the incident is under investigation.

Police carry out a controlled explosion on a suspicious vehicle parked a block away from El Inca prison, in Quito, Ecuador, Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Carlos Noriega)

Ecuador is in the grip of a crime wave linked to drug gangs, and Ecuadorians fear further violence in a country where a presidential candidate was assassinated last year.

President Daniel Noboa, who earlier this week declared a state of emergency and a war against gangs, said Thursday that Ecuador needs “tougher laws, honest judges” and the ability to extradite dangerous criminals to fight terrorism and organized crime.

Tensions rose on Tuesday when a group of men armed with explosives and guns broke into a television station in Guayaquil. No one was killed and 13 suspects were arrested in the incident, but the violent broadcast left much of the region stunned.

Los Choneros, one of the country's most violent gangs, and other criminal groups are fighting over drug trafficking routes and control of territory, including in prisons, where more than 450 inmates have been killed since 2021.

A February 2021 riot between rival gang members at Ecuador's most violent prison, Litoral, left at least 79 inmates dead. The following September, 116 inmates were killed in another gang war at the same prison.

Violence has spilled from prisons to the streets, turning once-peaceful Ecuador into one of the most violent countries in South America. Last year was Ecuador’s bloodiest on record, with more than 7,600 murders, up from 4,600 the year before.

Mr Noboa, who took office last November, won Ecuador's presidential election specifically on a promise to reduce the country's drug crime wave within a year and a half.

Mai Anh (according to AP)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/bao-luc-tiep-tuc-gia-tang-o-ecuador-dot-hop-dem-va-de-doa-danh-bom-post280665.html