Lasso, a proponent of tax cuts and austerity, has defeated socialist economist Andres Arauz in Ecuador's presidential runoff, with the majority of ballots having been counted.

Boat tourists in the Galapagos reportedly saw Darwin's Arch collapse into the Pacific Ocean. The unique rock formation, named after the British naturalist Charles Darwin, was often compared to France's Arc de Triomphe.

French dog specialists teach members of the Ecuadorian Red Cross, Fire Brigade, Army and Navy how to train dogs to sniff out Covid-19, which in the Latin American country has caused nearly 21,500 deaths and more than 453,000 infections (2,374 per 100,000 inhabitants).

Victoria Salcedo, a young girl without arms and only on legs, is taking on her next challenge by participating in the Miss Ecuador contest, as filmed in Guayaquil. Salcedo lost her limbs in an accident when she was five years old after being electrocuted by a high voltage cable.

Hundreds of union members in Quito, Ecuador, hit the streets to protest against an increase in fuel prices.

Relatives of prisoners in an Ecuadorian jail where gang clashes left over a hundred dead speak of their fears for their loved ones. "It's very painful," said the mother of one prisoner outside the jail, "I don't know if my son is well or not."

A riot at one of Ecuador's most notorious prisons has left at least 100 people dead and 52 injured. It was the latest in a series of deadly clashes in the country's overpopulated and understaffed prisons.

Images shows police hammering their way into the prison where rioting left at least 116 inmates dead, some of them decapitated, as rival drug gangs went to war armed with guns and grenades. Police later said they regained control of the prison on Thursday.

Police say they have resumed control of a prison in Ecuador which has been the scene of a deadly riot. Fighting between rival gangs has left at least 118 people dead.

Ecuadorian police have seized 2.5 tons of cocaine in two separate operations. A ton of was bound for Europe. They have also arrested five suspects.

In his Angelus prayer, Pope Francis deplores the "terrible outbreak of violence" in the prison of Guayaquil, Ecuador, where at least 118 inmates died - including six beheaded - in rioting among rival gangs before police regained control.

The South American country is grappling with a surge in violent crime and deadly prison riots. The government has pointed to drug trafficking and consumption as the underlying problem.