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🇪🇨 Ecuador /Energy & Infrastructure

Explosives hit Quito's mining agency offices; threats found days earlier

From El Comercio · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • An explosive attack targeted the offices of Ecuador's mining regulation agency (Arcom) in Quito early Monday, causing significant material damage and injuring a security guard.
  • The bombing occurred just four days after a controlled detonation of an explosive device found near a judicial complex in Quito, which also involved threats against judges.
  • The incidents, including a similar attack on an Arcom office in Machala in June, suggest a pattern of violence against state institutions, prompting investigations into potential connections.

Explosions rocked Quito early Monday, targeting the Agency for Regulation and Control of Mining (Arcom) and causing substantial damage to its building and the adjacent Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.

A security guard sustained minor injuries from the blast but has been treated and is out of danger. The attack, which occurred around 3:45 a.m., involved two explosive devices detonated simultaneously outside the Arcom offices. Investigators found a pamphlet addressed to the Arcom director, which is currently under analysis.

This bombing follows closely on the heels of another security scare just four days prior. On June 25, authorities conducted a controlled detonation of an explosive device found outside the Northern Judicial Complex, where threatening messages aimed at judges were also discovered. While the two incidents have distinct circumstances, their proximity has heightened concerns about the security of public institutions in the capital.

The attack constitutes a reaction of those who seek to curb the State's actions against illegal mining. We condemn the attack against the Arcom facilities in Quito.

— Juan Carlos BlumMinister of Environment and Energy, condemning the bombing.

Juan Carlos Blum, the Minister of Environment and Energy, condemned the attack, stating it was a reaction from those seeking to impede state actions against illegal mining. Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo vowed a firm government response, declaring, "They try to intimidate us, but we will respond with force to those who today tried to sow fear: prison or hell."

This is not the first attack on Arcom this month. On June 12, men on motorcycles threw an explosive device at an Arcom office in Machala, El Oro province. Pamphlets addressed to Arcom officials were found in both the Quito and Machala incidents, suggesting a disturbing pattern. Authorities are investigating potential links between these attacks, though no direct connection has been confirmed.

They try to intimidate us, but we will respond with force to those who today tried to sow fear: prison or hell.

— Gian Carlo LoffredoMinister of Defense, vowing a firm government response to the attack.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Comercio in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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