One injured in explosions outside Ecuador govt offices

Police remain next to a burned car, which had allegedly transported the people responsible for planting a bomb, in the outskirts of Quito, Ecuador. (AFP)

• The suspected bombings in the capital Quito came just days after an explosive device was defused near a courthouse

QUITO: Two explosions outside Ecuador’s agriculture ministry and mining regulatory agency left one person injured and damaged nearby property, authorities said Monday.
The suspected bombings in the capital Quito came just days after an explosive device was defused near a courthouse, as the South American country grapples with rising cartel violence.
Quito police chief Patricio Armendariz told reporters at the scene on Monday that two individuals exited a vehicle and left two explosive devices near the buildings.
The blasts happened at around 3:00 am (0800 GMT), in an area surrounded by homes and a gas station.
The mining regulatory agency said a member of the security team was injured but was out of danger.
Energy Minister Juan Carlos Blum condemned the attack by “those who seek to halt the state’s fight against the illegal extraction of minerals.”
Police said later on Monday that they had carried out a controlled detonation of a grenade near a bus terminal in the north of Quito, and arrested two men who were carrying the explosive.
Authorities did not specify if the bus terminal incident was connected to the early-morning explosions.
On Thursday, a bomb squad deactivated a similar device placed near a courthouse.
Organized crime groups waging war against the state and among themselves have made Ecuador one of the most violent countries in Latin America.