Ecuador says 1,500 troops deployed to Amazon after deadly guerrilla clash

Ecuador's Ministry of Defence on Monday said it had deployed 1,500 troops to an Amazon region to "find and eliminate" leftist guerrillas blamed for a recent ambush that killed 11 soldiers. Ecuador on Friday revealed that at least 11 troops were killed in an operation to combat illegal mining in the jungle near Ecuador's border with Peru. 

The guerrillas allegedly attacked with explosives, grenades and firearms, causing one of the worst tolls in recent years. Ecuador had averaged a killing every hour at the start of this year, as cartels battled for control over cocaine routes that pass from Peru and Colombia through the nation's ports. 

Ecuador's prosecutor's office blamed the guerrilla attack on the FARC offshoot Comandos de la Frontera.