Ecuadorian police stormed the Mexican Embassy in Quito to arrest a former vice president who sought asylum there — prompting Mexico to cut diplomatic ties and accuse Ecuador of violating international law.
Jorge Glas, 54, was hauled out of the embassy building after holing up there since December following his indictment on corruption charges, the Associated Press reported Saturday.
"Ecuador is a sovereign nation and we are not going to allow any criminal to stay free," the office of President Daniel Noboa said in a statement.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador responded by calling Friday's raid an "authoritarian act" and a "flagrant violation of international law and the sovereignty of Mexico."
Ecuador's move came one day after it said Mexico's ambassador was no longer welcome due to what the government called "very unfortunate" remarks Obrador made about last year's Ecuadorian presidential election, which was won by Noboa.
Alicia Bárcena, Mexico's secretary of foreign relations, said some Mexican diplomats were injured during the embassy raid.
The entire delegation will return home once the Ecuadorian government guarantees safe passage out of the country, Bárcena said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter.
The Mexican Embassy remained under heavy guard late Friday, AP said.
Mexico plans to take the matter to the International Court of Justice to "denounce Ecuador's responsibility for violations of international law," Bárcena said.
Under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, diplomatic buildings are deemed "inviolable" and local law enforcement agencies aren't allowed to enter without permission of the ambassador.
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who faces espionage charges in the U.S., lived in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London for nearly seven years before being arrested in 2019 for violating bail conditions set by a British court.
