GUAYAQUIL, Ecuador, Jan 17, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Ecuador on Friday deployed 10,000 soldiers in three coastal provinces to fight drug-trafficking gangs blamed for a surge in violence in the once-peaceful country.

President Daniel Noboa's government has vowed an iron-fist approach as the South American nation hits record levels of murders and other violent crimes.

Hundreds of special forces soldiers were deployed Friday to "reinforce security operations" in the provinces of Guayas, Manabi and Los Rios, Air Force General Mario Bedoya told reporters.

Planes with military personnel were also sent to Manta, the country's main fishing port.

Ecuador is located between the world's two top exporters of cocaine -- Colombia and Peru -- and has seen a surge in violence by gangs linked to Mexican and Colombian cartels.

Killings and clashes in neighborhoods and public spaces have become commonplace, and the country closed 2025 with a rate of 52 homicides per 100,000 residents -- one every hour, according to the Geneva-based Organized Crime Observatory.

"Prison or hell for anyone who jeopardizes security," the defense ministry said in a statement Friday.

Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo has instructed the military high command to operate indefinitely out of the port city of Guayaquil, where troops are inspecting seaports strategic for drug trafficking.