Ecuador imposes curfew in five coastal provinces through Nov. 10
The curfew requires residents to stay indoors from midnight to 5 a.m. and overlaps a four-day national holiday.
Ecuador's government placed five coastal provinces under a curfew on Sunday, China's state news agency Xinhua reported.
President Daniel Noboa issued the order by executive decree, covering Guayas, which includes the port city of Guayaquil, as well as Manabi, Los Rios, El Oro and Esmeraldas.
Under the curfew, residents must remain indoors from midnight to 5 a.m. local time, while special anti-crime operations are carried out to reduce violence in the provinces, the government said.
The restrictions will stay in force through Nov. 10 and are aimed at organized crime and drug trafficking.
It is the fourth curfew Noboa has ordered this year, after earlier restrictions in March, May and September.
The new measure takes effect during a four-day national holiday that began on Oct. 31, which marks All Souls' Day and the independence anniversary of Cuenca, the country's third-largest city in the south.
The curfew also begins four weeks before local elections are held.
Noboa has repeatedly declared states of exception or curfews, both nationwide and in selected provinces, as a core part of his approach to crime.
Since January 2024, his administration has described the country as being in an "internal armed conflict" with criminal gangs linked to drug trafficking, which it has labeled terrorists.
The declaration came amid rising violence, including armed attacks, kidnappings linked to extortion and homicides.