Ecuadorian gangs are creeping into Peru, drawn by drug trafficking and illegal mining profits, and pushed by a security crackdown back home.

In one incident, gunmen on motorcycles fired into a crowd gathered outside a grocery store, killing a child and six adults, police said.

The leader of an indigenous community in Peru asked for the government to declare a state of emergency on Monday and accused illegal miners of using children as "human shields" in the Amazon. He will ask the Peruvian government to declare a state of emergency in the area to allow the eviction of illegal miners.

Thousands of tons are extracted every month, a large part, from the international waters located off the seas of Ecuador, Peru and Chile. The main player behind that voracious appetite is China ...

Located on the western edge of South America between Columbia and Peru, Ecuador is the home to the Galapagos Islands. However, mainland Ecuador offers visitors a getaway steeped in biodiversity, rich culinary heritage and historic city centers with cathedrals and cobble streets.

The government of Ecuador has taken another step in its effort to gain help from foreign military forces to combat drug cartels and various organized crime groups