Overview
- A pickup truck exploded outside a Guayaquil shopping mall, killing one person and injuring at least two, as emergency crews evacuated nearby buildings and reported shattered windows.
- Police discovered a second vehicle packed with explosives near the mall and neutralized it, with the interior minister saying the devices were professionally manufactured to cause chaos.
- Within hours, explosives damaged a bridge in Naranjal and another linking Azuay and El Oro, prompting road closures and inspections, with no casualties reported.
- Interior Minister John Reimberg blamed the gang Los Lobos and Colombian ex-FARC dissidents and linked the attacks to recent crackdowns that destroyed illegal mining sites and led to detentions.
- Prosecutors opened investigations and the government offered rewards for information, while authorities released surveillance footage of the Guayaquil blast and the U.S. condemned the attacks.