Armed men storm Ecuador TV studio as state of emergency declared

Masked men broke onto the set of a public television channel in Ecuador waving guns and explosives during a live broadcast on Tuesday, and the president issued a decree declaring that the South American country had entered an “internal armed conflict.”

Masked men broke onto the set of a public television channel in Ecuador waving guns and explosives during a live broadcast on Tuesday, and the president issued a decree declaring that the South American country had entered an “internal armed conflict.”

The men armed with pistols and what looked like sticks of dynamite entered the set of the TC Television network in the port city of Guayaquil during a news program that was airing live in thousands of homes across the nation and shouted that they had bombs. Noises similar to gunshots could be heard in the background. It was not immediately clear if any station personnel were injured.

Alina Manrique, the head of news for TC Television, said she was in the control room, across from the studio, when the group of masked men burst into the building. One of the men pointed a gun at her head and told her to get on the floor, Manrique said.

The incident was aired live, although the station's signal was cut off after about 15 minutes. Mr. Manrique said some of the assailants ran from the studio and tried to hide elsewhere in the building when they realised they were surrounded by police.

“I am still in shock” Mr. Manrique told The Associated Press in a phone interview. “Everything has collapsed.... All I know is that its time to leave this country and go very far away.”

Ecuador has been rocked by a series of attacks, including the abductions of several police officers, in the wake of a powerful gang leader’s apparent weekend escape from prison. President Daniel Noboa on Monday declared a national state of emergency, a measure that lets authorities suspend people’s rights and mobilise the military in places like prisons.

Shortly after the gunmen stormed the TV station, Mr. Noboa issued another decree designating 20 drug trafficking gangs operating in the country as terrorist groups and authorizing Ecuador's military to “neutralize" these groups within the bounds of international humanitarian law.