:quality(85)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/3PJ3EA4ECZGMJLIMMTWSP76LGA.jpg "Five tourists were kidnapped and murdered by drug traffickers on a beach in Ecuador")
Five tourists were kidnapped and murdered by drug traffickers on a beach in Ecuador, leading to two arrests in the case. The victims, including six Ecuadorian adults and five children, were mistaken for members of a rival gang and subjected to interrogation before being killed.
President Daniel Noboa expressed solidarity with the victims’ families and warned that narcoterrorism is attempting to instill fear in the country. The violence in Ecuador has been escalating, with a record homicide rate of 43 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2023.
The recent incident is part of a larger trend of violence in the country, including political assassinations and prison riots. The president has called for a referendum to consult Ecuadorians on measures to combat drug trafficking, including allowing the military to support the police without a state of emergency and increasing penalties for terrorism and drug trafficking.
Ecuadorian prisons have become hotbeds of criminal activity, with drug trafficking gangs operating within the facilities. The country’s strategic location between Colombia and Peru, two major cocaine producers, has made it a key hub for drug shipments to the United States and Europe.