Soldiers patrol the perimeter of Inca prison during a state of emergency as a food vendor works on the sidewalk in Quito, Ecuador, on Jan 9, 2024, in the wake of the apparent escape of a gang leader from prison.

QUITO/LIMA - Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa on Tuesday declared "internal armed conflict" and mobilized the army to combat organized crime linked to drug trafficking, following an escalation of violence in the South American country.

"I have signed the executive decree declaring Internal Armed Conflict," the president posted on social media, along with the document.

The text shows Noboa called on the armed forces to carry out military operations, under international humanitarian law and with respect for human rights, to fight transnational criminal organizations operating in Ecuador.

He ordered the deployment of troops and police officers throughout the country to guarantee sovereignty and territorial integrity against transnational organized crime.

The decree identified the following criminal rings as terrorist organizations and belligerent non-state actors: "Aguilas, AguilasKiller, Ak47, Caballeros Oscuros, ChoneKiller, Choneros, Corvicheros, Cuartel de las Feas, Cubanos, Fatales, Ganster, Kater Piler, Lagartos, Latin Kings, Los Lobos, Los p.27, Los Tiburones, Mafia 18, Mafia Trebol, Patrones, R7 and Tiguerones."

The list is to be updated, the document added.

Ecuador's government declared a 60-day state of emergency on Monday with a nighttime curfew to quell violence in cities and inside prisons.

Ecuadorean police officers fuard the arrested suspects outside Ecuador's TC television channel after unidentified gunmen burst into the state-owned television studio live on air on Jan 9, 2024, in Guayaquil, Ecuador, a day after Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency following the escape from prison of a narco boss. (PHOTO / AFP)

Tuesday's measure followed a day of riots and disturbances at several prisons, including a prisonbreak that saw 39 inmates escape from a facility in the Andean city of Riobamba and the shocking armed takeover of a television station in Guayaquil in mid-broadcast.

The take-over of TC's studio in Guayaquil was broadcast live for about 20 minutes, as people wearing balaclavas and mostly dressed in black wielded guns and accosted staffers huddling on the floor.

Gunshots and yelling were heard on the live feed, and some of the invaders gestured at the camera. Someone could be heard yelling "no police".

TC, which broadcasts nationally, shares a site with another public broadcaster, Gamavision, and several radio stations.

The attackers entered through Gamavision's reception, assaulting staff there and leaving dynamite behind, TC news coordinator and reporter Leonardo Flores Moreno told Reuters earlier on Tuesday, when the operation to retake the site was still ongoing.

"We were in a meeting and they alerted us and we were able to hide," said Flores.

This screen grab of live video from the TC Television network shows a masked, armed person standing over journalists during a live broadcast, in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on Jan 9, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

Police said their operation resulted in the confiscation of explosives and guns, and police social media posts showed young men with their hands zip-tied behind their backs kneeling on the floor.

"All hostages were freed ... the perpetrators will confront justice and be sentenced for terrorist acts," the police said on X.

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The channel was back on-air for its evening news broadcast, with anchors saying the attorney general's office was on site collecting evidence. Two employees were injured, the channel said.

In the southern city of Machala, Quito and Los Rios province seven police officers were kidnapped in three separate incidents, police said earlier.

The three officers taken in Machala were freed late on Tuesday, the police said, and ten arrests were made.

Ecuadorean soldiers patrol outside the premises of Ecuador's TC television channel after unidentified gunmen burst into the state-owned television studio live on air on Jan 9, 2024, in Guayaquil, Ecuador, a day after Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency following the escape from prison of a narco boss. (PHOTO / AFP)

The police confirmed explosions in Esmeraldas and Los Rios, while mayor's offices in Cuenca and Quito confirmed others, and the attorney general's office said it was investigating one in Guayaquil. Local media reported additional explosions in Loja and Machala.

Authorities have not given a cause for any of the explosions, and no one has claimed responsibility.

Prisons agency SNAI said earlier on Tuesday a group of prisoners escaped from a penitentiary in Riobamba, including accused gang member Fabricio Colon Pico, who was allegedly involved in an attack plot against the attorney general. Seventeen of the 39 escapees have been recaptured, the prosecutor's office said.

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Eleven prison guards who had been taken hostage over the past two days have been released, SNAI added, but 139 guards and other staff are still being held.

Local authorities in Guayaquil said there were "take-over" incidents at five hospitals in the country's largest city, but that police and soldiers had restored order. It was unclear exactly what the incidents entailed.

This screengrab taken from a handout video released by Ecuador's presidency press office showing Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa announcing a state of emergency for the entire country, including the prison system, following the escape of the leader of the largest drug gang from a prison in Guayaquil (southwest), in Quito, on Jan 8, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)

Some Ecuadoreans are already questioning Noboa's efforts to control violence, which stymied his predecessor. Noboa plans to hold a plebiscite this year focused on security efforts.

Violent deaths nationally rose to 8,008 in 2023, the government has said, nearly double the 2022 figure of over 4,500.

The University of Guayaquil said reports of criminals entering its facilities were false, despite social media reports.

Ecuadorean sovereign bonds fell as concern over the violence spread to financial markets. The 2035 bond fell 1.125 cents to 36.25 cents on the dollar, while the 2030 dropped 1 cent to 48.25 and the 2040 lost half a cent to trade at 32.5 cents according to LSEG data.

Spreads widened 83 basis points to 2,039 bps in JPMorgan's EMBIG index, reversing all the gains of the year in a rally that began in mid-December.

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Meanwhile, the government of neighboring country Peru declared an emergency along its northern border with Ecuador.

Prime Minister Alberto Otarola announced that the emergency declaration would deploy an unspecified number of army troops to support police forces.

According to La Republica newspaper, Peruvian President Dina Boluarte called an emergency meeting earlier on Tuesday to take urgent measures to prevent thugs who escaped from Ecuador's prisons from entering Peru. 

With Reuters inputs