In Pictures

In Pictures: Protests rock Ecuador’s capital

After days of deadly anti-austerity protests, meeting between President Moreno and indigenous leaders likely on Sunday.

Indigenous people perform a ritual during the protest in Quito. [Paolo Aguilar/EPA]

13 Oct 2019

Violent demonstrations over the government’s austerity moves have left six people dead and nearly 2,100 wounded or detained, according to authorities in Ecuador.

Protesters on Saturday targeted a television station and a newspaper office, as well as setting fire to the comptroller general’s office, forcing President Lenin Moreno to impose a curfew on the capital, Quito, and call for talks with indigenous leaders.

The UN and the Catholic Church said that “after having contact with the government and the organisations of the indigenous movement, the first reunion for dialogue has been called for October 13” in Quito, according to a joint statement.

The crisis broke out at the start of October after Moreno ordered the lifting of fuel subsidies as part of a deal struck by his government to obtain a $4.2bn loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The price of fuel has since more than doubled.

Ecuador’s army took to the streets after Moreno ordered the first 24-hour curfew in decades. It was the first such action imposed since a series of coups in the 1960s and 1970s.

By Saturday night, soldiers had retaken control of the park and streets leading to the National Assembly and the national comptroller’s office, which had been broken into by protesters who started fires inside the building.

Hundreds of warriors from the Ecuadorian Amazon joined the protests against the government's economic measures [Paolo Aguilar/EPA]

Indigenous leaders of the protests - which have paralysed Ecuador’s economy for nearly a week - say they are willing to negotiate with President Lenin Moreno, signalling a possible exit from the crisis. [Dolores Ochoa/AP Photo]

Police clash with anti-government demonstrators in Quito. [Fernando Vergara/AP Photo]

Demonstrators on Saturday ransacked and set fire to the building housing the comptroller general's office, which was shrouded in thick smoke after being attacked with firebombs. [Bienvenido Velasco/EPA]

Moreno said the military would enforce a 24-hour curfew in Quito and around critical infrastructure like power stations and hospitals in response to the violence. [Henry Romero/Reuters]

The violence forced Moreno to relocate his government to Ecuador's second city, Guayaquil [Jose Jacome/EPA]

The oil industry was hit hard by the protests with the energy ministry suspending more than two-thirds of its distribution of crude. [Paolo Aguilar/EPA]

People use homemade masks to face tear gas attacks during clashes. Thousands of individuals from disadvantaged indigenous communities in the Amazon and the Andes travelled to Quito where they are spearheading demands that the subsidies return. [Paolo Aguilar/EPA]

The protests have left six people dead and nearly 2,100 wounded or detained, according to authorities. [Jose Jacome/EPA]

A first meeting between Ecuador's president and indigenous leaders is expected on Sunday, the United Nations said [Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters]