- Argentina held, Brazil leave it late in 2026 World Cup qualifiers
- Obama blasts 'crazy' Trump in first rally for Harris
- 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, a plea in favour of world order?
- Fry homers as Guardians down Tigers to stay alive in MLB playoffs
- Japan PM presses China's Li on airspace intrusion
- In Trump 'Truths,' conspiracies, attacks -- and doubts about the election
- How Sebastian Stan found a 'relatable' Trump for 'The Apprentice' biopic
- Panama's water wheel trash collector keeps plastic at bay
- It's still 'the economy, stupid,' says US political guru Carville
- Five key dates in the history of the America's Cup
- Zelensky to meet Pope, Scholz as whirlwind Europe tour ends
- At least 10 dead in Florida but Hurricane Milton not as bad as feared
- Far from eye, Hurricane Milton's deadly tornados rampaged Florida
- At least 10 dead in Florida after Hurricane Milton spawns tornadoes
- Argentina held, Bolivia stun Colombia in 2026 qualifiers
- Socceroos have 'nothing to fear' from Japan
- Sean 'Diddy' Combs sex trafficking trial set for May 2025
- Bolivia stun Colombia in World Cup qualifiers
- Internet Archive reels from 'catastrophic' cyberattack, data breach
- Greece earn late win against England in Nations League, Italy-Belgium stalemate
- Trump biopic 'The Apprentice' hits US theaters weeks before election
- Pavlidis dedicates 'special' Greece win over England to tragic Baldock
- Wall Street stocks retreat from records on US inflation data
- 'Like a quake': Beirut shaken after deadliest strikes on centre
- Fallen giants Ghana in AFCON trouble after Sudan draw
- Asian leaders meet in Laos with US, Russia on world turmoil
- England gamble backfires as Pavlidis fires emotional Greece to victory
- Obama stumps for Harris, Trump talks US protectionism
- New-look France ease past Israel in Nations League
- Belgium fight back to draw with 10-man Italy in Nations League
- 'Get a life': Hurricane whips up US election storm
- Japan stay perfect in World Cup qualifying
- Relief as Lebanon evacuees dock in Turkey
- Lebanon says 22 dead in Israeli strikes on central Beirut
- NBA boss Silver sees games back in China 'at some point'
- Israel strikes central Beirut, killing 22
- Table tennis and Netflix push Ukraine teen into French Open contention
- Civilians flee Gaza's Jabalia in tightening Israeli siege
- Israel strikes central Beirut, killing 18
- At least 10 dead in Florida from tornadoes caused by Hurricane Milton
- Warhol's rare 'Queen' collection opens at Dutch museum
- Three-time NBA champion Green retires
- MLB Twins up for sale after 40 years
- S.Sudan floods affect 893,000, over 241,000 displaced: UN
- Solar storm could impact US hurricane recovery efforts: agency
- Windies sweat on injury to 'crucial' Taylor at World Cup
- Lebanon says 11 dead, 48 injured in Israeli strikes on Beirut
- Panama lashes out at EU over tax haven 'outrage'
- Erdogan says Gaza 'shame of humanity', calls for permanent ceasfire
- TD Bank to pay more than $3 bn to US in money-laundering case
Ecuador gangsters hold police hostage in crisis for new president
Ecuador's new president grappled Tuesday with a security nightmare as gangsters held four police officers hostage after he declared a state of emergency in response to a drug kingpin's escape from prison.
President Daniel Noboa, who is only 36, was elected in October on a pledge to fight rampant drug-related crime and violence in this South American country that has a key intermediary role in the US- and European-bound cocaine trade.
Noboa declared a 60-day state of emergency throughout the country on Monday, including in Ecuador's notoriously violent prisons, and imposed a nighttime curfew.
He acted after a powerful gang leader, Jose Adolfo Macias, known as "Fito," escaped from prison.
Overnight Monday into Tuesday officials announced that four police officers had been kidnapped -- three in the coastal city of Machala and one in Quito.
Three people driving a vehicle without license plates abducted the officer in Quito, according to the police statement.
A chilling video circulating on social media illustrated the crisis that the president is now facing. It shows the group of three kidnapped officers sitting on the ground with a gun pointed at them, while one is forced to read a statement addressed to the president.
"You declared war, you will get war," this officer says. "You declared a state of emergency. We declare police, civilians and soldiers to be the spoils of war."
"Anyone found on the street after 11 pm will be executed," says the statement read by an audibly terrified police officer.
In a video posted on Instagram, Noboa said the state of emergency would allow armed forces to enter and help control prisons.
"We will not negotiate with terrorists nor rest until we return peace to all Ecuadorans," he said.
He announced last week that he will build two maximum security prisons -- similar to the one built by Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele during his war against gangs -- to hold the most dangerous criminals.
- Prison break -
Macias had been serving a 34-year sentence for organized crime, drug trafficking and murder.
The 44-year-old leader of the powerful Los Choneros gang was declared missing Sunday by police conducting an inspection of the prison in the port city of Guayaquil.
He is believed to have been tipped off and escaped just hours before police arrived, according to presidential spokesman Roberto Izurieta.
The Attorney General's office filed charges against two prison officials it accuses of being involved in Macias' escape.
This is his second prison break -- the last was in 2013 when he was recaptured after three months.
After his escape, unrest broke out at penitentiaries in six of Ecuador's 24 provinces, according to Ecuador's prison authority SNAI, with guards taken hostage at some of the facilities.
Heavily armed police and soldiers entered the prisons of El Oro, Loja, Chimborazo, Cotopaxi, Azuay and Pichincha, after which the military distributed images of half-naked inmates rounded up in courtyards.
- Violence -
Long a peaceful haven sandwiched between top cocaine exporters Colombia and Peru, Ecuador has seen violence explode in recent years as enemy gangs with links to Mexican and Colombian cartels vie for control.
The kidnapping of police officers on Monday night came on top of explosions in the coastal town of Esmeraldas, in a region controlled by gangs.
Police say an explosive device was thrown near a police station and two vehicles were burned in other areas, with no one killed.
In Quito, a car was reportedly blown up, and a device exploded near a pedestrian bridge.
Drug violence has taken a heavy toll. The year 2023 closed with more than 7,800 homicides and 220 tons of drugs seized, a new record for the nation.
Since February 2021, clashes between prisoners have left more than 460 dead.
L.Miller--AMWN