Seven killed in gang-ridden Ecuador's latest massacre

Seven people were killed when gunmen opened fire at an illegal cockfighting venue in gang violence-stricken Ecuador, police said.

Some of the victims in Sunday's shooting had as many as 40 bullet wounds, police in the western Samborondon municipality reported on X.

It did not specify who the victims were or the motive for the shooting.

Local media reported dozens of people injured.

Samborondon is in Guayas province on Ecuador's Pacific coast, where drug gangs with ties to international cartels have left a trail of blood as they vie for control of trafficking routes.

The province is home to the port city of Guayaquil, the main exit point for drugs bound for the United States and Europe.

The once peaceful country of 17 million inhabitants has seen its homicide rate increase eightfold in five years.