the interior minister says. The authorities have also declared a night-time curfew in these areas as part of a "new phase" in their "war" on criminal gangs. Since coming to office in November 2023, President Daniel Noboa has tried to quell drug-related violence but nevertheless Ecuador registered a record murder rate in 2025. Noboa has also joined a US-led alliance of 17 countries aimed at fighting criminal cartels in the Western Hemisphere.

"We're at war," Ecuadorean Interior Minister John Reimberg told residents of the provinces of El Oro, Guayas, Los Ríos and Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas. "Don't take any risks, don't go out, stay at home," he added. Ecuador's geographical location - sandwiched between Colombia and Peru, the world's largest producers of cocaine - has turned it into a key transit country for the illicit drug. Around 70% of the cocaine produced in Colombia and Peru is estimated to be shipped through Ecuador. Noboa's government has been working with the administration of US President Donald Trump to quell the flow of cocaine from Ecuador to the US.

Last week, the FBI opened its first office in the Andean country, a move which came shortly after the two countries launched joint counter-narcotic operations. Noboa was one of the Latin American leaders to attend an international meeting hosted by Trump in Mar-a-Lago, which the US authorities dubbed the "Shield of the Americas" summit. At the summit, Trump likened criminal gangs to a "cancer" and urged his Latin American counterparts to use military force to root them out. "We don't want it spreading," Trump added. Following the meeting, Noboa posted a photo on social media of himself standing next to Trump with the words: "For too long, the mafias thought that America was their territory. That they could cross borders, move drugs, guns and [spread] violence without consequences. Their time has run out." Since coming to office, Noboa has tried to combat criminal organisations in his country with an iron fist and has declared several states of emergency but nevertheless the murder rate rose by over 30% between 2024 and 2025. (BBC)