16 dead in Mexico in clashes between military and criminal gangs – Firstpost

At least 16 people were killed in multiple clashes between Mexican security forces and suspected criminals in the violence-plagued southern state of Guerrero on Thursday, the military said.

The first battle occurred in the town of Tecpan de Galeana near the Pacific coast, in which two people were killed and four others were injured.

Security forces later fought with a criminal group that attacked a military base in the same area, killing 14 gunmen, according to a statement from SEDENA’s national defense secretariat.

Guerrero, one of Mexico’s poorest states, has experienced years of violence linked to turf wars between cartels fighting for control of drug production and trafficking.

Last year, 1,890 murders were recorded in the state that is home to the seaside resort of Acapulco, a former playground for the rich and famous that is now plagued by crime.

In early October, the mayor of the capital Guerrero was killed less than a week after taking office, and his gruesome beheading sparked outrage across the country.

Further north, a car bomb exploded outside a police station in Guanajuato state on Thursday, wounding three officers, local officials said.

The explosion damaged the police station, four houses and several homes, but only the police officers were injured, the agency said.

The central region is a thriving industrial center and home to several popular tourist destinations, but is now also considered the most violent state in Mexico.

On October 4, the bodies of twelve murdered police officers were found in different areas of Salamanca, a city in Guanajuato.

Officials say the violence in the state stems from a conflict between the local Santa Rosa de Lima gang and the Jalisco New Generation cartel, one of the most powerful in all of Mexico.

“I want to be clear: our priority is the pacification of Guanajuato, and we will tackle this complex task together,” state Governor Libia Garcia said on social media after Thursday’s attack.

She said an air and ground operation involving state security forces had been launched to support the city police.

Mexico has suffered more than 450,000 drug-related killings since the government began using the military to fight the cartels in 2006.

President Claudia Sheinbaum, who took office on October 1, has vowed to continue her predecessor’s “hugs not bullets” strategy, which aims to fight crime at its root through social policy while improving intelligence to use.

“The war on drugs will not return,” she said, referring to the U.S.-backed offensive launched in 2006.

There has also been an increase in violence in the northwestern cartel stronghold of Sinaloa since the arrest of drug lord Ismael Zambada in the USA in July.

On Monday, Mexican troops shot and killed 19 suspected members of the Sinaloa Cartel after they were attacked.

Zambada’s capture sparked power struggles between his followers and gunmen loyal to jailed cartel founder Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán and his sons.

Zambada accused Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of El Chapo’s sons, of kidnapping him and turning him over to U.S. law enforcement.