Blasts hit Ecuador bridges after illegal mine crackdown
Explosive devices were detonated on two bridges on routes between the coast and mountains in Ecuador, which the country’s interior minister described as acts of retaliation following a major military operation against illegal miners.
“The line we are taking is in retaliation for what we have done in Imbabura (province) in terms of controlling the strike and putting an end to illegal mining,” Home Affairs Minister John Reimberg said at a press conference in the northern city of Otavalo. he said.
No injuries have been reported and no one has been arrested so far due to the explosions.
Authorities are pursuing the theory that a criminal organization known as Los Lobos was behind the attack, Reimberg said.
The USA defined the group as a terrorist organization after a meeting with the Ecuadorian president last month.
Reimberg added that one explosion damaged part of the base of the bridge, while the other explosion only partially exploded.
Infrastructure Minister Roberto Luque said he believed the explosive attacks on channel X were intended to disrupt traffic.
The explosions followed a major military and air force operation on Monday that destroyed several illegal mining entrances that the military said were operated by organized crime groups, hitting one of the most important sources of income.
7 people were detained during the operation.
Some of them belong to the opposition Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) group, Reimberg said.
Otavalo, near where the operation took place in Imbabura province, has been the scene of a series of protests since late September organized by CONAIE, Ecuador’s largest indigenous organization, over President Daniel Noboa’s decree ending diesel subsidies.
Noboa said subsidized diesel was being diverted to illegal mining and smuggling operations.
Although the government has tried to open roads by sending aid convoys, the province has been isolated since the protests began.
Clashes broke out between protesters and security forces in Otavalo on Tuesday.
Local groups reported that at least 50 people were injured, while the government reported that 13 soldiers were injured by machetes and fireworks.
Wednesday’s explosions occurred just hours after a car bomb exploded outside a shopping mall in Ecuador’s largest city, Guayaquil, late Tuesday, killing one person and wounding several others.
A second vehicle containing explosives was found nearby, but the vehicle did not explode and was neutralized.
Last week, Noboa was traveling in a convoy through a rural town when he was attacked by people throwing rocks at his car.
The government called it an assassination attempt and arrested five people on terrorism charges.
CONAIE condemned planned police brutality.
The five people were released shortly after the judge ruled that their detention was unlawful.
Speaking at an event in Guayaquil on Wednesday, Noboa said criminal groups were trying to destabilize the government and prevent Ecuadorians from meeting their needs.
“We cannot back down against mafias who want to terrorize Ecuadorian families,” he said.
