QUITO — Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso declared a state of emergency and night curfew in three coastal provinces Monday, amid a wave of violence over the weekend in the Andean country that left at least eight people dead.
Lasso declared a state of emergency in the provinces of Manabí and Los Ríos and in the city of Durán, near Guayaquil, after Agustín Intriago, mayor of the coastal city of Manta, was shot dead on Sunday.
It also comes on the back of riots over the weekend in the Litoral Penitentiary, in Guayaquil, with clashes between gangs inside the prison.
Lasso has frequently resorted to declaring states of emergency as Ecuador grapples with prison riots and waves of violence across the country.
«We cannot deny that organized crime has permeated the State, political organizations and society itself, it is a problem that has been brewing for more than a decade,» Lasso said after a meeting of the security cabinet.
The state of emergency will last for 60 days in the provinces, while the curfew will vary during that period, the government said.
