Ecuador’s armed forces increased patrolling and searches in one of Guayaquil’s most dangerous neighbourhoods on Friday (January 12) days after the city was shocked by a wave of violence, Reuters reports.
Though some residents of the Portete district welcomed the measure, others reacted negatively to police presence.
The area’s proximity to a maritime port makes it prone to criminal activity and power struggle between gangs, Portete District’s police chief lieutenant colonel Edison Medina said.
A dramatic spike in violence in Ecuador this week - including the on-air storming of a TV station, the hostage-taking of 178 prison staff by inmates and the kidnapping of police officers - appears to be a response by gangs to president Daniel Noboa's plans to tackle a dire security situation, the government has said.
