International leaders condemn Ecuador after police break into the Mexican Embassy in Quito

QUITO, Ecuador — The worldwide condemnation of Ecuador’s authorities for its determination to interrupt into the Mexican Embassy snowballed Sunday with extra presidents and different leaders expressing disapproval, shock and dismay.

The criticism got here as Mexico’s ambassador and different personnel had been set to reach in Mexico Metropolis after departing Ecuador’s capital, Quito, on a business flight. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador severed diplomatic ties with Ecuador instantly after Friday’s raid, which worldwide legislation consultants, presidents and diplomats have deemed a violation of long-established worldwide accords.

Police broke via the exterior doorways of the Mexican Embassy in Quito to arrest Jorge Glas, who had been residing there since December. He had sought asylum after being indicted on corruption expenses.

Mexico plans to problem the raid on the World Courtroom in The Hague.

The Spanish international ministry in an announcement Sunday mentioned, “The entry by drive into the Embassy of Mexico in Quito constitutes a violation of the 1961 Vienna Conference on Diplomatic Relations. We name for respect for worldwide legislation and concord between Mexico and Ecuador, brotherly nations to Spain and members of the Ibero-American neighborhood.”

A day earlier, the Group of American States in an announcement reminded its members, which embrace Ecuador and Mexico, of their obligation to not “invoke norms of home legislation to justify non-compliance with their worldwide obligations.”

U.S. State Division spokesperson Matthew Miller mentioned “america condemns any violation of the Vienna Conference on Diplomatic Relations, and takes very critically the duty of host nations below worldwide legislation to respect the inviolability of diplomatic missions.” He referred to as on each nations to resolve their distinction.

Honduran President Xiomara Castro, writing on X, characterised the raid as “an insupportable act for the worldwide neighborhood” and a “violation of the sovereignty of the Mexican State and worldwide legislation” as a result of “it ignores the historic and basic proper to asylum.”

Diplomatic premises are thought-about international soil and “inviolable” below the Vienna treaties and host nation legislation enforcement companies are usually not allowed to enter with out the permission of the ambassador. Folks looking for asylum have lived anyplace from days to years at embassies around the globe, together with at Ecuador’s in London, which housed WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange for seven years as British police couldn’t enter to arrest him.

Alicia Bárcena, Mexico’s secretary of international relations, on Friday posted on the social media platform X that quite a few diplomats suffered accidents in the course of the break-in.

Bárcena mentioned Mexico would take the case to the Worldwide Courtroom of Justice “to denounce Ecuador’s duty for violations of worldwide legislation.” She additionally recalled Mexican diplomats.

On Saturday, Glas was taken from the lawyer normal’s workplace in Quito to the port metropolis of Guayaquil, the place he’ll stay in custody at a maximum-security jail. Individuals who had gathered outdoors the prosecutor’s workplace yelled “power” as he left with a convoy of police and army autos.

Glas’ lawyer, Sonia Vera, advised The Related Press that officers broke into his room and he resisted after they tried to place his palms behind his again. She mentioned the officers then “knocked him to the ground, kicked him within the head, within the backbone, within the legs, the palms,” and when he “couldn’t stroll, they dragged him out.”

Vera mentioned the protection group was not allowed to talk with Glas whereas he was on the prosecutor’s workplace, and it’s now working to file a habeas corpus petition.

Authorities are investigating Glas over alleged irregularities throughout his administration of reconstruction efforts following a strong earthquake in 2016 that killed lots of of individuals. He was convicted on bribery and corruption expenses in different circumstances.

Ecuador’s Overseas Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld on Saturday advised reporters that the choice to enter the embassy was made by President Daniel Noboa after contemplating Glas’ “imminent flight danger” and exhausting all prospects for diplomatic dialogue with Mexico.

Mexico granted Glas asylum hours earlier than the raid. Sommerfeld mentioned “it’s not authorized to grant asylum to folks convicted of widespread crimes and by competent courts.”

Noboa grew to become Ecuador’s president final yr because the nation battled unprecedented crime tied to drug trafficking. He declared the nation in an “inner armed battle” in January and designated 20 drug-trafficking gangs as terrorist teams that the army had authorization to “neutralize” throughout the bounds of worldwide humanitarian legislation.

Will Freeman, a fellow of Latin American research on the Council on Overseas Relations, mentioned the choice to ship police to Mexico’s embassy raises issues over the steps Noboa is prepared to take to get reelected. His tenure ends in 2025 as he was solely elected to complete the time period of former President Guillermo Lasso.

“I actually hope Noboa shouldn’t be turning extra in a Bukele route,” Freeman mentioned, referring to El Salvador President Nayib Bukele, whose tough-on-crime insurance policies have been closely criticized by human rights organizations. “That’s to say, much less respectful of rule of legislation with a view to get a lift to his reputation forward of the elections.”

Freeman added that whether or not Glas was abusing diplomatic safety is a “separate subject” from the choice to ship police to the embassy.

“We see a sample of that in Latin America with politicians abusing embassies and international jurisdictions, to not flee prosecution however to flee accountability,” he mentioned.

The Mexican Embassy in Quito remained below heavy police guard after the raid — the boiling level of current tensions between Mexico and Ecuador.

Vera, Glas’ lawyer, mentioned she fears “one thing might occur” to him whereas in custody contemplating the monitor document of the nation’s detention amenities, the place lots of of individuals have died throughout violent riots over the previous few years. These killed whereas in custody embrace some suspects in final yr’s assassination of a presidential candidate.

“In Ecuador, going to jail is virtually a demise sentence,” Vera mentioned. “We think about that the worldwide political and authorized particular person accountable for the lifetime of Jorge Glas is President Daniel Noboa Azín.”

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Garcia Cano reported from Mexico Metropolis. Related Press writers Gonzalo Solano in Quito and Megan Janetsky in Mexico Metropolis contributed to this report.

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Observe AP’s protection of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america