Ecuador cartel thugs stormed a TV studio and threatened presenters during a live broadcast as the South American country spiralled into chaos.

The masked and armed gangsters carrying pistols, shotguns, dynamite, and grenades barged into the TC Television studio in Guayaquil, holding staff and a male anchor at gunpoint live on air on January 9.

Armoured officers later arrived at the scene and arrested the 13 people involved in what police are calling a terrorist act.

Footage shows the suspects with their hands cuffed behind their backs and kneeling in front of a wall while being guarded by police special forces.

Two TV station employees were reported injured in the brief takeover.

The brazen act comes as Ecuador grapples with a flare-up of violence this week after Ecuadorian president Daniel Noboa, who was elected on his campaign promise to crack down on cocaine-smuggling gangs, declared a 60-day state of emergency.

The decree was announced following the escape of kingpin Adolfo Macias, leader of the Los Choneros cartel, from prison.

At least 10 people, including cops, have been killed, while more than 130 prison staff have been held hostage amid the chaos.

President Noboa told local reporters: 'We are fighting narco-terrorism. They disseminate images to frighten the public and to bring the president of the republic to his knees, and that is not going to happen.

'I sympathise with the families. We are in a state of war and we cannot give in.'