QUITO, Ecuador — Soldiers firing concussion grenades and automatic weapons on Thursday night rescued Ecuador’s president from a hospital where he had been trapped by rebellious police for more than 12 hours.
President Rafael Correa appeared on the balcony of the presidential palace shortly afterward and addressed an adoring crowd. He had been trapped in the hospital where he was treated after being tear-gassed earlier Thursday in a confrontation with hundreds of police angry over a law that would cut their benefits.
In the rescue mission, at least one soldier was seen hit by gunfire and tumbled down a small embankment.
The South American nation’s government declared a state of siege, putting the military in charge of public order, suspending civil liberties and allowing soldiers to carry out searches without a warrant.
The defiant police took over police barracks in Quito, Guayaquil and other cities. Some set up roadblocks of burning tires, cutting off highway access to the capital.
Schools shut down in Quito, and many businesses closed early due to the absence of police protection that left citizens and businesses vulnerable.
Looting was reported in the capital — where at least two banks were sacked — and in the coastal city of Guayaquil. That city’s main newspaper, El Universo, reported attacks on supermarkets and robberies due to the absence of police.
Hundreds of Correa supporters gathered outside the National Assembly, which was seized by striking police.
The armed forces commander, Gen. Ernesto Gonzalez, declared the military’s loyalty to Correa at a news conference. He called for “a re-establishment of dialogue, which is the only way Ecuadorans can resolve our differences.”
But he also called for the law that provoked the unrest to be “reviewed or not placed into effect so public servants, soldiers and police don’t see their rights affected.”
The law, which Congress approved on Wednesday, must be published before it takes effect and that had not yet happened.
Peru and Colombia closed their countries’ borders with Ecuador in solidarity with Correa.
