Five people were killed and 20 others injured in a bomb attack in Ecuador.
The government blamed organized crime for Sunday's crime in the western city of Guayaquil.
"Mercenaries of organized crime" carried out the attack with explosives, Interior Minister Patricio Carrillo said on Twitter.
"This is a declaration of war against the state."
"Either we are able to unite" in the fight against organized crime, or "the price to be paid to society will only increase," Carrillo warned.
According to the rescue services, the explosion destroyed eight houses and two cars.
The exact course of the attack was initially unclear.
Ecuador borders Colombia and Peru, the two largest cocaine producers in the world.
In the meantime, Ecuador has developed into a central hub for drug deliveries to Europe and the USA.
Various gangs fight for supremacy.
Also, Mexican drug gangs use Ecuador to launder the profits from their illegal businesses.
With the activities of drug gangs, violence has also increased in Ecuador.
The murder rate in the South American country has risen from six to 14 murders per 100,000 inhabitants since 2018.
The violence often spreads to Ecuador's prisons.
More than 350 inmates in Ecuadorian prisons have been killed since February 2021.