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Ecuador's Noboa: US-Backed Anti-Cartel Operations Cut Violence and Poverty
President Daniel Noboa told lawmakers that his government extradited a dozen crime bosses and seized nearly 300 tons of drugs. He also reported drops in poverty and extreme poverty during 2025.
May 24, 3:28 PM·1m read3 sources
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U.S. assistance. Addressing the National Assembly in Quito, Noboa said the government had extradited twelve crime bosses to the United States and seized almost 300 tons of drugs.
Noboa stated that Ecuador cannot develop when families live in fear of organized crime. He added that authorities will continue to locate and extradite wanted individuals. The country has recorded rising drug-related violence since 2021, with last year’s homicide rate reaching 50 murders per 100,000 residents according to the Ministry of the Interior.
Noboa, reelected last year to a four-year term, has maintained a state of exception that permits military patrols with police and property searches without warrants. U.S. personnel against a training camp allegedly used by Colombian drug traffickers.
4 percent. Glaedys González, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, said Noboa may have been optimistic about security progress and that violence levels remain high. Noboa was first elected in 2023 after former President Guillermo Lasso dissolved the National Assembly and called a snap election.
