Ecuador declares curfew in coastal provinces for security operations

QUITO, March 13 (Reuters) - Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa on Friday decreed a nighttime ​curfew in four provinces of the Andean ‌country, starting March 15, intended to facilitate military operations against criminal organizations with support from the ​United States.

The measure covers the coastal ​provinces of Guayas, El Oro, Santo ⁠Domingo, and Los Rios - the country’s main ​drug trafficking routes - and will run from ​11 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. local time.

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Joint military operations between Ecuador and the U.S. started in ​early March. A recent mission near the ​Colombian border resulted in the destruction of a drug ‌trafficking ⁠camp, according to the Ecuadorean Ministry of Defense.

The site was operated by a group known as the Border Commandos, comprised ​of FARC ​dissidents, and ⁠had the capacity to house 50 people, the ministry added.

Noboa ​has made military repression against organized ​crime ⁠a cornerstone of his administration. As part of his hardline stance he has criticized the ⁠government ​of neighboring Colombia for ​failing to combat drug trafficking, and implemented tariffs on Colombian imports.

Reporting ​by Alexandra Valencia, Editing by Natalia Siniawski

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