In Ecuador hooded gunmen storm TV studio, take hostages
Photo: Armed individuals force entry into television studio in Ecuador (Flickr by Martin Dewar)
Armed individuals wearing masks stormed the TC Television studio in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador, taking the presenters hostage during a live broadcast, according to citing Sky News and Primicias.
In the live broadcast, the criminals ordered the hosts to lie on the floor, claiming to have bombs. Gunshots were also heard in the background.
Following this incident, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa signed a decree that declared a state of internal armed conflict in the country.
According to the decree, several groups in Ecuador are to be recognized as terrorist organizations, and the armed forces are given orders to neutralize such groups.
Background
The incident at the television studio occurred a day after Noboa declared a state of emergency. The reason for this was the escape from prison of one of the most notorious leaders of the country's drug cartels, Jose Adolfo Macias.
The leader of the Los Choneros gang was serving a 34-year sentence at La Regional prison for drug trafficking and murder.
The escape occurred on the same day he was to be transferred to a maximum-security prison in Guayaquil.
Recall that on August 10, unidentified individuals killed presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in Ecuador.
