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In Brief
- Twenty-five Mexican troops have died in clashes with cartel gunmen.
- A prison guard, a member of the state prosecutor’s office and 30 suspected members of Oseguera’s organisation, were also killed.
- The US provided intelligence information to Mexico ahead of the raid.
In a significant escalation of violence, 25 Mexican soldiers have lost their lives in confrontations with cartel gunmen. This followed a high-profile raid that resulted in the demise of Mexico’s most notorious drug kingpin, as reported by a leading security official.
Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera, who led the formidable Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), suffered fatal injuries during a gunfight with military forces in Tapalpa, a town located in Mexico’s western Jalisco state. According to the army, he passed away en route to Mexico City.
The announcement of Oseguera’s death ignited widespread violence, as cartel operatives retaliated by blocking highways and setting fire to vehicles and businesses in 20 different states across the nation.
Security Secretary Omar Garcia Harfuch confirmed the tragic loss of at least 25 National Guard members in the ensuing battles.
Harfuch also noted that casualties included a prison guard, a member of the state prosecutor’s office, and 30 individuals suspected of being part of Oseguera’s criminal network.
Oseguera had a $US15 million (around A$21 million) US bounty on his head.
Eight suspected cartel gunmen were killed in the special forces operation to capture him, and three soldiers were wounded, Defence Secretary Ricardo Trevilla said.
Fearful residents went into hiding, and tourists took shelter in their hotels and resorts as cartel members went on the rampage.
While US President Donald Trump had yet to respond publicly to the elimination of Oseguera, he posted briefly on his Truth Social platform: “Mexico must step up their effort on Cartels and Drugs!”
Although the violence appeared to be subsiding, Mexico remained on high alert.
The government sent 2,500 troops to Jalisco — a state that is scheduled to host four World Cup soccer games this summer.
The streets of Jalisco’s state capital Guadalajara were almost empty on Monday.
Schools, shops, pharmacies and petrol stations remained shuttered, all events involving large crowds were cancelled and public transportation was suspended.
The violence gripped the resort city of Puerto Vallarta, and spread to neighbouring Michoacan state, where Oseguera’s cartel has been waging war against a rival coalition of criminal groups.
‘Shelter in place’
Travel warnings from Britain, Canada and the United States were issued in the fallout, with Australia urging citizens to “exercise a degree of caution” on Monday.
Washington asked US citizens to “shelter in place until further notice”.
Dozens of US and Canadian flights were cancelled.
Oseguera, 59, was considered the last of the drug lords who acted in the brutal mould of the now-imprisoned Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.
With his son Ruben “El Menchito” Oseguera Gonzalez, 35, convicted by a federal jury in Washington in September, experts have warned the “absence of a direct succession” could lead to a power vacuum.
“That opens the door to violent realignments within the organisation,” David Mora, an expert at the Crisis Group analysis centre, told AFP.
US ‘intelligence support’
Mexico said in addition to its own military intelligence, the operation to seize Oseguera was carried out with “complementary information” from US authorities.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Washington “provided intelligence support”.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo was adamant, however, that no US forces took part in the capture raid.
Two suspected cartel members were arrested and a variety of weapons seized during the operation, including rocket launchers capable of downing aeroplanes and destroying armoured vehicles, the army said.
Oseguera was a founding member of CJNG, which was formed in 2009 and has grown into one of the most violent drug cartels in Mexico, ahead of the Sinaloa cartel.
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau welcomed the operation and called Oseguera “one of the bloodiest and most ruthless drug kingpins”.
The raid came amid pressure from Trump for Mexico to stem the flow of drugs into the United States.
Trump has threatened repeatedly to slap tariffs on Mexican exports, arguing Sheinbaum has not done enough to combat the drug trade.
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