What you need to know about the chaos in Ecuador

This week, violence broke out across Ecuador after a known gang leader disappeared from prison. Explosions, looting, gunfire and burning vehicles were reported, and there were riots in several prisons. In the largest city, Guayaquil, armed men stormed a TV studio during a live broadcast on Tuesday.

President Daniel Noboa declared a 60-day state of emergency, imposed a nationwide curfew and authorized the military to patrol the streets and take control of prisons. Mr. Noboa also deployed thousands of police and soldiers to search for the gang leader, Adolfo Macías.

Here’s what we know so far:

What’s the latest?

By Tuesday, violence in Guayaquil had killed at least eight people, Mayor Aquiles Álvarez said at a news conference. Shops, schools and government buildings were closed and streets in Guayaquil and the capital Quito were jammed with traffic as workers tried to get home.

Authorities said a second major gang leader had escaped from a prison in Ecuador along with other inmates. In a presidential decreeMr. Noboa declared that an internal armed conflict was underway and ordered the military to “neutralize” 20 gangs, which he called terrorist organizations.

What happened at the TV station?

During a live news broadcast by TC Televisión in Guayaquil, several masked gunmen stormed the set. They forced staff members to the ground and kicked and punched them. Anchors and other staff were forced to appear in a video asking the president not to intervene.

One of the attackers could be heard saying he wanted to send a message about the consequences of “tampering with the mafia.” But police intervened before he could get a microphone.

Police later said they had arrested thirteen people, seized weapons and explosives, and so on all the people who were held hostage were safe.

Who is Adolfo Macías?

Mr Macías, better known as ‘Fito’, is one of the country’s most notorious kingpins. He is the head of Los Choneros, believed to be one of the first Ecuadorian gangs to establish ties with Mexican drug cartels.

On Sunday, he went missing during a contraband investigation from his cell in an overcrowded prison in Guayaquil, where he had been serving a 34-year sentence for drug trafficking and other crimes. He had escaped from prison before, in 2013.

Like other gang leaders in Ecuador, Mr. Macías ran his criminal enterprise behind bars. Some security experts believe that as many as a quarter of the country’s prisons are controlled by gangs.

The government recently ordered Mr. Macías and other prominent convicts transferred to a high-security facility. Experts said this could have led to his escape and sparked the prison riots.

How powerful are gangs in Ecuador?

Ecuador, a country of 18 million people, has only been hit by gang wars in recent years. Over the past five years, foreign drug traffickers have joined forces with gangs like Los Choneros to build a powerful drug trafficking industry across the country, infiltrating the government, extorting businesses and killing Ecuadorians who tried to target them.

Fernando Villavicencio, a presidential candidate who was assassinated in August, said days before his death that he had received multiple threats from members of Los Choneros. He had been outspoken about links between organized crime and government officials.

Mr. Macías was moved to a high-security wing after the killing, but his lawyers successfully argued for him to be returned to the cell from which he led Los Choneros. Mr. Macías celebrated by releasing a music video.

Mr Noboa, who won elections and took office in November, has vowed to crack down on gangs and restore security in Ecuador. “The time is over when drug trafficking convicts, hitmen and organized crime dictate to the government what to do,” he said in a video statement on Tuesday.