Four Young Boys Killed in Ecuador

Guayaquil Grief Ecuador Ecuadoran officials identified four charred bodies as the remains of four boys who went missing in early December near a military base, in a case posing a challenge to President Daniel Noboa and his war on criminal gangs, the Guardian reported. The boys, all of them Black and between the ages of 11 and 15, were residents of Las Malvinas, a poor district of the country’s largest city, Guayaquil. The children were returning from playing soccer on Dec. 8, when they were allegedly beaten and taken into custody by soldiers from the nearby Taura air base. After being apprehended, the four were allegedly released 26 miles away, late at night, in an unfamiliar area. Their remains were found on Christmas Eve. The Ministry of Defense, which initially denied involvement, later said the boys were apprehended because of their involvement in a robbery, a claim prosecutors say lacks evidence. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defense has also suggested that the boys could have been victims of organized crime after being released by the military. Public prosecutors are now investigating whether the military is responsible for the deaths. More than a dozen soldiers are in custody. The incident has led to widespread outrage in Ecuador, where kidnapping, extortion, and murders have become commonplace, CBS News reported. Hundreds of people have protested, demanding the soldiers be prosecuted. This incident comes amid attempts by Noboa to defeat criminal gangs that have gained in power and have been terrorizing the country over the past few years. However, analysts say the case is a test of the president’s hardline policies – he came to power last year on a pledge to bring security back to Ecuador.