U.S. forces, in cooperation with Ecuadorian authorities and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), have carried out a joint operation targeting a group suspected of being a local affiliate of the Mexican Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
According to Ecuador’s Interior Minister, John Reimberg, more than 30 Ecuadorian nationals suspected of having links to the cartel were arrested during the operation, which was conducted across several cities.
Around 320 Ecuadorian police officers and 50 personnel from the U.S. Southern Command took part in the operation.
Authorities suspect that the group was trafficking cocaine from Colombia to international destinations, using ports in southwestern Ecuador.
Ecuador, a close U.S. ally, has intensified its cooperation with Washington in the fight against organized crime.
In recent years, the country has become one of the main cocaine trafficking routes in South America, while local criminal groups have established ties with powerful Mexican and Colombian cartels.
