Ecuador suspends rights of assembly in some areas, deploys soldiers to prisons amid violence wave

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso is once again making use of the executive’s power to suspend people’s rights of assembly in some areas and mobilize the military in an attempt to quell the most recent spike in violence in the South American country. Lasso on Tuesday declared a state of emergency covering all prisons and ordering the deployment of soldiers and police officers to regain control of the facilities. The measure came a day after he suspended people’s rights to assembly and move freely in areas that include a city where a mayor was fatally shot Sunday. Ecuador is gripped by a serious outbreak of violence that authorities attribute to disputes among organized crime groups.