The president of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, declared a new state of emergency this Wednesday (22) in seven of the country's 24 provinces, following the increase in the number of violent deaths and other crimes in these regions.
The measure lasts 60 days in the provinces of Guayas, El Oro, Santa Elena, Manabi, Sucumbios, Orellana and Los Rios, in addition to an area of Azuay, according to a decree signed by Noboa.
In January, the Ecuadorian leader declared the country was at war and classified 22 criminal gangs as terrorist groups.
The decree was sent to the Constitutional Court, which had canceled the president's previous decree.
The decree determines that security forces will be able to enter homes and intercept correspondence in these provinces without prior authorization.
The Ecuadorian leader blames criminal groups for the rise in violence – including gangs that traffic drugs to Colombia and Peru through Ecuador.
In January, criminals invaded a television station and took prison officers hostage.
Noboa has already used state of emergency declarations to intensify police and military operations to combat thousands of murders and other crimes.
The attorney general's office is investigating eight extrajudicial killings believed to have occurred during the country's most recent state of emergency, after human rights groups warned that authorities were failing to take steps to prevent abuses.
Source: CNN Brasil
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