All hostages seized in Ecuador prison riots freed: Officials
2 Min Read
Guards and prison workers, taken hostage after President Daniel Noboa announced on Monday a military takedown of criminal groups, are now free.
-
Residents stand still with their hands up for a soldier who will search them as the military patrols the south side of Quito, Ecuador, Friday, January 12, 2024. (AP)
Prison authorities in Ecuador announced on Saturday night that all 136 hostages taken during prison riots have been released.
"Security protocols and the joint work of the police and the national army enabled the release of all the hostages who were being held in various prisons across the country," the SNAI prison authorities said in a statement on X.
El Servicio Nacional de Atención Integral a Personas Adultas Privadas de la Libertad y a Adolescentes Infractores informa: pic.twitter.com/8qxKzjY8Sq
— SNAI Ecuador 🇪🇨 (@SNAI_Ec) January 14, 2024
President Daniel Noboa celebrated their release.
"Congratulations to the patriotic, professional, and courageous work of the armed forces, national police, and the SNAI (...) for achieving the release of the prison guards and administrative staff held in the detention centers of Azuay, Canar, Esmeraldas, Cotopaxi, Tungurahua, El Oro, and Loja," Noboa wrote on X.
Felicitaciones a la labor patriótica, profesional y valiente de las Fuerzas Armadas, Policía Nacional y el SNAI bajo el liderazgo de la ministra @Palencia3Monica y Gian Carlo Loffredo por lograr la liberación del cuerpo de seguridad y vigilancia penitenciario y el personal…
— Daniel Noboa Azin (@DanielNoboaOk) January 14, 2024
Two hostages were killed by inmates
Police reported that 46 guards and one civil servant were released from the Cotopaxi prison, 13 from the Tungurahua prison, and 15 others from the El Oro prison, where the body of a civil servant was discovered.
Images aired by the police showed the guards, many visibly emotional and fatigued, being supported by their colleagues shortly after their release.
Throughout their ordeal, the hostages frequently appealed for assistance from authorities, a plea conveyed through videos posted on social media. According to the videos, at least two hostages were killed by the inmates, with one of them being hanged.
By the end of last week, nearly 180 prison guards and civil servants had been taken hostage, with 41 of them being freed earlier.
Read next: Despite state of emergency, 10 killed in Ecuador armed attack
The prison workers were seized as hostages after Noboa initiated a military crackdown on criminal groups this week, leading to a deadly clash with narco gangs in the South American nation.
The crisis was initiated by the escape of one of the country's most powerful narco bosses, Jose Adolfo Macias, also known by the alias "Fito," from Guayaquil prison. This escape led to riots in at least five prisons and attacks on security forces to spread terror.
A night curfew was imposed and over 22,400 military personnel were deployed across the country, including in prisons.
