Ecuador

Walking fast, with their eyes alert and voices low, a few Ecuadorans flitted about fearfully Wednesday on city streets all but deserted amid an escalating conflict between the armed forces and violent drug gangs.

President Noboa stated that there are many organized criminal groups in the country, which he labeled as terrorist organizations, adding that he ordered the armed forces to carry out military operations to neutralize these groups.

CNN reported a dramatic interruption during a live broadcast at a Guayaquil-based TV network, where hooded and armed individuals forcibly entered the studio, compelling staff onto the floor amidst alarming sounds of gunshots and shouting. The incident occurred at the state-owned TC Television, causing a viral stir on social media as the live stream signal remains offline.

Ecuador's president gave orders Tuesday to "neutralize" criminal gangs after gunmen opened fire in a TV studio and bandits threatened random executions on a second day of terror in the violence-riddled country.

At least 10 people have been killed in a series of attacks blamed on gangs as the country exploded in what President Daniel Noboa called an "internal armed conflict".

The report states that the number of people in need of humanitarian aid this year has risen to 300 million, that the number of forcibly displaced people has increased to 110 million and that 20 African countries are facing the worst crisis, according to Reuters.
Sudan tops the IRC's humanitarian situation list, followed by the Palestinian territories and South Sudan.

Leftist frontrunner Luisa Gonzalez looked set to take on a surprise candidate, the youthful son of one of Ecuador's richest men, in a run-off election in October, official results showed Sunday.

Gonzalez, a lawyer close to divisive former socialist president Rafael Correa, was leading with 33 percent of the vote, as 80 percent of the vote was counted.

Authorities have seized 64 kilograms of cocaine from inside a container at the port of Piraeus.

Acting on a tip off from the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), an anti-drugs unit on Monday searched a container from Ecuador and found 58 makeshift packages containing the cocaine.

The drugs had an estimated market value of 2 million euros, the authorities said.

Ecuador's presidential candidate was killed during a campaign rally.

Fernando Villavicencio, who is also a former lawmaker, was shot dead in the capital, Quito. His Movimiento Construye party said on Twitter that gunmen attacked its offices in the capital, Quito.

President Guillermo Lasso vowed that the act would not go unpunished.

An Ecuadorian presidential candidate known for speaking up against cartels and corruption was shot and killed Wednesday at a political rally in the capital, amid a startling wave of gang-driven violence in the South American country.

Latin America is taking Barbie mania to an extreme, with everything from pink-colored tacos and pastries, commercial planes bearing the Barbie logo, political ads and even Barbie-themed protests.

Stores, street vendors and restaurants throughout Latin America are offering up all sorts of Barbie-themed goodies.