More than 130 Ecuador prison staff held hostage as armed forces target crime gangs

Soldiers and police officers stand guard following a wave of violence around the nation, prompting President Daniel Noboa to declare gangs to be terrorist organisations to be hunted by the military, in Quito, Ecuador January 10, 2024. REUTERS/Karen Toro

Alexandra Valencia

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.

President Daniel Noboa, who took office in November promising to tackle a growing security problem caused by drug trafficking gangs increasingly transporting cocaine through Ecuador, on Tuesday named 22 gangs as terrorist organizations, making them official military targets.