The Ecuadorian Army bombarded an area where illegal mining activities were allegedly taking place, generating approximately $300,000 daily. The operation was carried out in the locality of El Chical, in the northern province of Carchi, bordering Colombia. During the four-day operation, the military executed a 'sustained bombing' and 'saturation of fire', which allowed the destruction of around 50 mine shafts. For this attack, the Army used a combined weapons system that included three AMX-13 tanks, 81-millimeter mortars with 40 grenades, an armed light C3 helicopter with 0.50 caliber ammunition, and collective weaponry with 5,520 7.62-millimeter cartridges. According to Defense, the groups dedicated to illegal mining in this area will have an estimated annual loss of $108 million. 'Operation 'Fuego Letal' in Chical stripped the illegal mining mafias and armed irregular groups, whom we have declared war on, of nearly $110 million,' wrote Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo on his social media account. This offensive comes at a time when President Daniel Noboa's government has intensified its fight against organized crime, within the 'war' it has been waging against these structures for over two years, which he has classified as 'terrorists' and are mainly dedicated to drug trafficking, illegal mining, and extortion under threat of death.
