Esther Imonmion
Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa has alleged that an attempt was made to poison him using gifts of chocolate and jam laced with three highly concentrated toxic substances.
Speaking to CNN on Thursday, October 23, Noboa said his team had proof of the attempted poisoning, though he has yet to publicly present any evidence. The president described it as “practically impossible” for such chemicals to appear in the items by chance.
The claim comes amid ongoing unrest in Ecuador following a sharp rise in fuel prices under Noboa’s administration. The centre-right leader has launched military crackdowns on drug gangs but has also faced criticism for his handling of anti-government protests.
Noboa dismissed suggestions that he fabricated the assassination attempts to discredit opponents. “No one throws a Molotov cocktail at themselves, or poisons themselves with chocolate, or throws stones at themselves,” he said.
Authorities in early October announced the arrest of five people over an alleged assassination attempt when about 500 people hurled rocks at the president’s convoy. Officials reported “signs of bullet damage” on his vehicle, though the BBC said it could not independently verify that a bullet had been fired.
In late September, Ecuador’s government also said a humanitarian convoy containing Noboa, UN, and EU diplomats was ambushed by about 350 people, who attacked it with Molotov cocktails and briefly took 17 soldiers hostage. The group had been delivering aid to communities affected by a national strike.
That nationwide strike—protesting the government’s decision to end diesel subsidies—was led by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie) and ended on Thursday, October 23, after several weeks of demonstrations.
Conaie, Ecuador’s largest Indigenous organisation, has a history of leading major protests, including movements that toppled three presidents between 1997 and 2005.