US State Department designates Ecuadorian gang Chone Killers as foreign terrorist organization

The U.S. State Department announced that the criminal group known as the Chone Killers, which operates in Ecuador, has been classified as a foreign terrorist organization. The designation places the group on a secret blacklist of global terrorist entities and triggers a series of U.S. sanctions. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the gang is responsible for attacks on civilians, officials and law‑enforcement personnel and that its activities help Mexican cartels traffic narcotics, financing further violence.

The decision is part of the broader policy of the Trump administration, which has also authorized U.S. armed forces to conduct bombing raids since September 2025 against vessels suspected of moving drugs through the eastern Pacific and the Caribbean. The campaign has caused more than 200 deaths and has drawn criticism from opposition politicians, experts and NGOs over its legality. Ecuador’s foreign ministry thanked the United States for its “strong support” in the joint effort to combat criminal organizations.

The designation allows the United States to freeze assets, prohibit transactions and limit travel for members of the Chone Killers, while signaling increased cooperation with Ecuador on security and counter‑narcotics operations.