Thousands of Ecuadorians flee their homes as gang violence worsens

AI Summary

Rising gang violence in Ecuador has forced thousands of families to flee their homes as gangs take over housing developments to finance drug operations and hide kidnapping victims. The worsening security situation has led to significant displacement and community destabilization.

For one grandmother, it was when bullets began hitting ⁠the rooftops of her neighbourhood that she decided she would have to leave the housing development ⁠where she had lived for nearly 20 years. A sharp rise in fighting between gang factions in Ecuador has prompted thousands of families to flee and abandon their homes to the gangs, who strip the houses for drug money or use them to hide kidnapping victims, according to residents and police. One of the areas that has been the site of the...