The attack on the TC Televisión network in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s largest city, was captured by the station itself before the live broadcast was cut off about 15 minutes after the attack.
At around 2 pm local time, masked individuals invaded the station’s headquarters, shouting that they had bombs. Sounds that appeared to be gunshots were heard and images circulated on social media showing journalists crouched on the studio floor.
The invasion came a day after President Daniel Noboa declared a 60-day state of emergency following the kidnapping of at least seven police officers by gang members and the escape of a gang leader from prison.
Adolfo Macías, leader of a gang known as Los Choneros, disappeared on Sunday from a maximum security prison.
In the case of TC Televisión, police were deployed to the studio and made around a dozen arrests, according to the Teleamazonas news channel. At least two suspects are believed to have fled, the media group said.
Images shared by police on social media show several suspects handcuffed and face down on the studio floor.
César Ricaurte, executive director of the press freedom group Fundamedios, told VOA that at least one person was seriously injured.
Although the station’s image transmission was cut off early in the attack, audio could still be heard.
“You could hear the audio…. of gunshots, screams of workers. After about 30 minutes, members of the police and armed forces entered and tried to take control of the canal,” said Ricaurte.
Ecuadorian authorities confirmed the occurrence of a series of attacks across the country, including explosions and the kidnapping of several police officers.
Ricaurte told VOA that there had been requests to reinforce the security of media groups, but added that he was not aware of any “explicit and concrete threat.”
On social media, Fundamedios condemned the invasion and called on journalists in the country to take security measures.
The media should try “not to expose themselves unnecessarily and act as responsibly as possible in disseminating information about the critical security situation in our country,” said a statement from the group on X.