Ecuadorian police used tear gas as clashes erupted on Sunday during an anti-government protest in Quito, the nation's capital, against rising diesel prices and Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa.

Anti-government demonstrations began several weeks ago, organized by the country’s largest Indigenous group, in response to the removal of a fuel subsidy that raised diesel prices from $1.80 to $2.80 per gallon.

"The different social sectors, Indigenous movement, workers, youth, neighborhoods of Quito, peoples of Ecuador, we are rising up against the neoliberal and hunger-inducing policies of the dictator Noboa (referring to Ecuador President Daniel Noboa)," Nelson Erazo, a union leader who attended the rally, said on Sunday.

Chants of “out with Noboa” could be heard on Sunday as protesters walked from the south of the city north, towards a popular park. Motorized police and tear gas dispersed them.

Diesel is critical to the agricultural, fishing and transport sectors where many Indigenous people work.

Until now, protests against the economic policies of Noboa's government have been concentrated in the north of the country. Authorities prepared in advance for Sunday's protest in Quito by deploying personnel.

A state of emergency decreed by the government is in force in 10 provinces, including Pichincha, to which Quito belongs. The measure restricts the right to freedom of assembly.

The government says the elimination of the subsidy is a measure to counteract fuel smuggling across the border into Colombia and Peru.

The strike, which began weeks ago, has so far left one dead, dozens injured—including protesters and security forces—and more than a hundred detained.

AP video by Cesar Olmos