Ecuador reinforces the military presence in Guayaquil

Ecuador reinforces the military presence to curb crime. President Guillermo Lasso sent the Army on Sunday to patrol the Guayaquil region, in the southwest of the country. As he argued, the fight against drug trafficking carried out by his government “has reduced the territory of the mafias.” The number of troops deployed and the time they will remain in an area where 70 people have died in the last three weeks are unknown.

“The Armed Forces will further strengthen control throughout the border cord to prevent the entry of drugs from the north and weapons from the south,” the president stated.

Ecuador has almost doubled the number of homicides in a single year, reaching 14 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2021. That same year the record number of drug seizures was reached, 210 tons. Guayaquil is the country’s main commercial seaport. Some of the largest international cartels operate in the territory, such as the Mexican Sinaloa and Nueva Generación.

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