2023-09-01 00:36:05
– 57 guards and police held hostage by prisoners
A hostage situation is underway Thursday evening in a prison in southern Ecuador, following a day of violence caused by the explosion of two car bombs in Quito.
Posted today at 02:36 Updated 1 hour ago
Archive image of Cuenca prison in Ecuador.
AFP
Prisoners at a penitentiary in Ecuador’s southern city of Cuenca, who have been protesting the transfer of inmates to other prisons since Wednesday, are holding 57 guards and police, the interior minister said on Thursday. Juan Zapata.
Amid a day of violence caused by the explosion of two car bombs in Quito, Juan Zapata said seven of the detainees were police officers. “We are worried regarding the safety of our officers,” he told a news conference in Quito.
On Wednesday, hundreds of soldiers and police carried out a search operation for weapons, ammunition and explosives in Latacunga prison (south), one of the largest penitentiaries in the country. Clashes between gangs of prisoners are frequent. Some 430 inmates have died in Ecuador since 2021.
Track of retaliation
The hypotheses on the reasons for the hostage taking in Cuenca multiplied throughout the day, but the track of reprisals following the intervention of the armed forces in Latacunga was first put forward by the prison administration (SNAI) from the country. Later, the authorities indicated that the taking of hostages was a sign of protest once morest the transfer of prisoners to other penitentiaries.
Drug-trafficking groups are waging war for power in prisons, which have become centers of operations. Faced with this wave of violence between organizations linked to Mexican or Colombian cartels, President Guillermo Lasso declared a state of emergency on July 24 throughout the prison system for 60 days. It allows in particular to deploy the army in the prisons.
Found an error? Please let us know.
0 comments
1693532424
#Ecuador #guards #police #held #hostage #prisoners
