Noboa declares new emergency in seven provinces, claiming ‘the work is not over’ in crime fight

Claiming the “work is not over” in combatting criminal organizations in Ecuador, President Daniel Noboa on Wednesday declared a new state of emergency in seven of the country’s 24 provinces as well as one area of an eighth province.

The new state of emergency applies to Los Ríos, Guayas, Santa Elena, Manabí, El Oro, Sucumbíos and Orellana Provinces.

The measure will be in force for 60 days in Guayas, El Oro, Santa Elena, Manabi, Sucumbios, Orellana and Los Rios provinces, as well as in one community in western Azuay province.

In January, Noboa designated 22 criminal cartels and gangs as terrorist groups, claiming they were responsible for most of the violence in the country.

The new declaration was approved by the Council of Public and State Security (Cosepe), and will be submitted to the Constitutional Court for final review. Earlier in the month, the court ruled that a previous emergency declaration in five provinces was not sufficiently justified.

The Cosepe said that additional documentation will be submitted to the court for the new decree, saying that continuing violence requires an “extraordinary response” and citing the success of previous emergency actions.

Under terms of the new emergency, security forces will be able to enter homes and intercept correspondence in the targeted provinces without prior authorization, Noboa said in the decree. In addition, the armed forces will continue to assist police in street operations.

In addition to the five coastal provinces included in the previous emergency, the new one also includes two Amazonian provinces, Sucumbíos and Orellana, as well as the Camilo Ponce Enríquez canton in Azuay provinces, on the border of Guayas Province, areas known for violence associated with illegal mining operations.

Noboa blames violence – including the January invasion of a television station by gunmen and a mass hostage-taking of prison guards – on drug gangs which move cocaine from Colombia and Peru to Ecuadorian ports for shipment to Europe and the U.S.

National Police report that violent deaths fell 28% in the first four months of the year, compared with the same period in 2023, though it acknowledged that other crimes like kidnappings and extortion rose.

The attorney general’s office is investigating eight extrajudicial killings reported to have taken place during the country’s most recent state of emergency, after rights groups warned authorities were not taking steps to prevent abuses.