Ecuador airport shooting: One dead in ‘targeted’ attack at Guayaquil terminal

Gunshots rang out at José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport in Guayaquil, Ecuador, killing one man and injuring another in what authorities believe was a targeted assassination

A horrifying attack has erupted at an international airport, trapping passengers in the midst of violence and claiming at least one life.

Shocking footage from Ecuador’s José Joaquín de Olmedo airport has started spreading across social media, showing scenes of complete pandemonium as distressed onlookers tend to the injured.

Video footage emerged alongside witness testimony on social platforms, detailing a “heavy shootout” within Guayaquil’s airport with “several people shot”.

One individual was fatally wounded and another hurt on Wednesday, June 17, during an armed assault at the entrance to Guayaquil’s international airport, local media reported.

According to regional sources, the incident occurred near the international airport’s entrance, in what is thought to have been a deliberate assassination bid.

The gunfire erupted in the international arrivals departure section of the José Joaquín de Olmedo airport, where a gang of armed attackers unleashed bullets on their targets in what officials suspect was a premeditated strike.

Early accounts indicate that the fatally wounded man – thought to be the primary target – had just landed at the Ecuadorian terminal when he was shot down.

His spouse was there during the incident, while the wounded survivor was quickly rushed to hospital for emergency care. An insider from Ecuador’s Ministry of the Interior verified to esteemed local news outlet PRIMICIAS that two people had been detained in relation to the assault.

The Ministry’s source disclosed that the duo were apprehended in the airport terminal’s car park.

The gunfire incident took place merely 24 hours after the South American nation announced a state of emergency across 10 provinces due to a rise in gang-related violence and organised crime.