In Ecuador, 2024 set off to a dramatic start, as the whole country anxiously watched masked gunmen storm a local TV station and take journalists hostage on live broadcast. This was part of a series of coordinated attacks that spread across the country like wildfire, resulting in 30 car explosions and kidnapping of seven police officers - a grim reality of an ongoing war between the local drug gangs and law enforcement. How did this once peaceful, picturesque country descent into chaos in less...