India, February 23 (HBTV): Mexican security forces have killed drug lord Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, also known as ‘El Mencho’, who led one of the country’s most powerful criminal organisations. His killing has triggered a wave of violence across several states, including Jalisco.
According to Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defence, Oseguera was wounded in a clash with soldiers in the town of Tapalpa in Jalisco on Sunday and died while being flown to Mexico City. He had a $15 million bounty on his head from the United States.
The operation sparked widespread violence, with gunmen torching vehicles and blocking highways in multiple states, including Jalisco, Colima, Michoacan, Nayarit, Guanajuato and Tamaulipas.
Jalisco’s capital, Guadalajara, which is set to host matches in the upcoming FIFA World Cup, was largely deserted on Sunday night as residents stayed indoors. Videos on social media showed people running through Guadalajara airport in panic, while smoke was seen rising over the tourist city of Puerto Vallarta.
Mexican security officials said cartel operatives set up more than 250 burning roadblocks across at least 20 states, paralysing key transport corridors and forcing residents to remain indoors.
Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus urged residents to stay home and suspended public transportation. Schools were closed on Monday in several states.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum praised the country’s security forces in a post on X and called for calm. ‘There is absolute coordination with the governments of all states,’ she said. ‘In the vast majority of the national territory, activities are proceeding with complete normality.’
Oseguera, 59, is among the most prominent Mexican drug lords to be taken down since the capture of Sinaloa cartel founders Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman and Ismael Zambada, both currently in US custody.
The Defence Secretariat said the raid was carried out with ‘complementary information’ from US authorities. Four members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel were killed during the operation, while two others died during transfer to Mexico City. Two additional suspects were arrested, and armoured vehicles, rocket launchers and other weapons were seized.
Three members of the armed forces were wounded and are receiving medical treatment.
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau welcomed the operation and described Oseguera as ‘one of the bloodiest and most ruthless drug kingpins’.
‘This is a great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America, and the world,’ he added.
The US State Department advised Americans in Jalisco, Tamaulipas, Michoacan, Guerrero and Nuevo Leon to remain in safe locations due to ongoing security operations.
Canada also issued a travel advisory for parts of Jalisco, Guerrero and Michoacan, citing ‘shootouts with security forces and explosions’. It urged its citizens in Puerto Vallarta to shelter in place and maintain a low profile.
Air Canada announced it was suspending flights to Puerto Vallarta ‘due to an ongoing security situation’ and advised customers not to travel to the airport. United Airlines and American Airlines also confirmed cancellations of flights to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara.
The military operation follows pressure from the administration of US President Donald Trump on President Sheinbaum’s government to intensify its crackdown on drug trafficking, including threats of direct intervention in Mexico.
Oseguera, a former police officer and avocado farmer, co-founded the Jalisco New Generation Cartel around 2007 and built it into what the FBI considers Mexico’s most powerful trafficking organisation, responsible for a significant share of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl entering the United States. He maintained a low public profile, with most known photographs of him dating back decades.