The nation's leader Daniel Noboa emerged without injury following his official convoy was attacked by rock-hurling demonstrators and what officials characterized as possible shots.
The president was opening a water treatment plant in the country's central region when his motorcade was attacked by a sizeable crowd demonstrating against increasing energy costs.
About five hundred individuals showed up and were throwing stones at him, and there are clearly bullet marks on the president's car
stated the country's environmental official.
Officials confirmed that five individuals were arrested and would stand trial on terrorism charges โ an offense carrying a maximum punishment of three decades in prison.
Video footage released by the government depicts protesters standing in the street, covered in banners, scrambling to collect large stones and bricks.
When the presidential SUV passed, objects thudded into the paneling and broke glass.
Someone could be audible yelling: "Heads down! Heads down!" as the car accelerated from the scene.
Officials said they were still investigating whether some of the damage on Noboa's armored vehicle were caused by bullet impacts.
This reported attack occurred amid days of increasingly violent demonstrations triggered by a government decision to increase diesel prices.
Protesters have gone on strike, blocked roads and abducted sixteen military personnel โ who were subsequently freed without injury.
Ecuador's largest Indigenous organization reported that a demonstrator had been killed by armed forces during one of the rallies.
Over 100 people, including demonstrators and security services, are believed to have been hurt in the unrest.
Noboa has imposed a state of emergency across multiple provinces.
The presidential administration stated on social media after the attack that "cowardly acts will not deter" the president.
A senior official of the Organization of American States commented that "such violent acts are an assault on democratic principles, stability, and the spirit of peaceful coexistence that must dominate in our societies."
Noboa is attempting to reduce diesel subsidies to save about $1bn in government spending, diverting a significant portion of the savings to safety initiatives.
The nation, once considered one of Latin America's most secure countries, has experienced a significant increase in violence in the past few years.
Strategically located between Colombia and Peru, two of the world's largest cocaine producers, the country has become a significant transit hub for narcotics.
Authorities have alleged cartels of fueling the unrest, suggesting that illegal organizations are taking advantage of the demonstrations to destabilize the nation.
It is estimated that seventy percent of the world's illegal drug market passes through Ecuador, a large portion of it headed for the US.
The trade has attracted global crime syndicates, including Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel, Italy's 'Ndrangheta, and Albanian criminal networks.
Their competition for control of smuggling corridors has transformed the nation into one of the region's most dangerous places.
The president has called for a public vote to permit the presence of American military to the nation, overturning a previous restriction on international military installations.
Rashid Al-Mansoori is a tech journalist with over a decade of experience covering innovations and digital transformations in the Middle East.
