On November 9, four prisoners were killed and more than 30 others were injured when a riot broke out at a prison in Ecuador, according to the country's prison management agency.
Ecuador's prison watchdog said the riots stemmed from the "resettlement of prisoners" to a new maximum-security prison, which is expected to be operational in another province.
The violence comes less than two months after 14 prisoners were killed at the same facility in a suspected armed clash between gangs.
The prison is located in the coastal city of Machala, southwest of Ecuador. Authorities said security forces have regained control of the prison after the riot, in which one police officer was injured.
The condition of the injured is not yet clear.
Prisons in Ecuador have become one of the most dangerous places in Latin America due to overload, corruption and poor state control, creating conditions for drug-related gangs in Colombia and Mexico to spread.
Many of these groups were equipped with smuggled weapons from outside and continued to operate criminal activities right from prison.
Since 2021, more than 500 people have died in riots in Ecuador's prison. Last year, a series of coordinated riots in many prisons led to 150 prison guards being taken hostage.
