According to officials on Friday, September 13, there have been at least 15 deaths this week as a result of growing hostilities between the rival factions of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel.
The government has dispatched security reinforcements to the northwest state of Sinaloa, which has long been a cartel stronghold, in response to gunfire, kidnappings, and arson.
The spike in violence comes after Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, a co-founder of the cartel, was arrested in the US in July. Zambada, 76, and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of infamous drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, are both charged with kidnapping and transferring to U.S. authorities without their will. In the United States, El Chapo is presently serving a life sentence.
It is thought that the violence in Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa, is a result of a power struggle inside the cartel. El Chapo and his kids’ supporters and Zambada’s faction are allegedly at odds. Zambada entered a not guilty plea to multiple counts in a New York court on Friday.
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The governor of Sinaloa state, Ruben Rocha Moya, stated, “The rivalry stems from the events of July 25.” He was alluding to Zambada’s arrest.
Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the president of Mexico, asked the opposing parties to act with “a minimum of responsibility” and refrain from hurting innocent bystanders amid the chaos. He urged locals to “act with caution, but without alarmism,” voicing optimism that Culiacan would soon return to normal.
According to the state prosecutor’s office, they are looking into 20 possible incidents of forced disappearance in addition to the 15 confirmed deaths. Some school districts have closed due to the violence, and Independence Day celebrations have been cancelled statewide.
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Governor Rocha Moya declared, “There will be no celebration, neither public nor private.” Many Culiacan businesses have shut down, and grocery shortages are a result of panic buying. Business owners are finding it difficult to run their companies in the midst of the upheaval, the National Chamber of Commerce said. Employees no longer feel secure leaving their homes for work.
Recent years have experienced turmoil in Culiacan due to cartels. After a disastrous security attempt to apprehend El Chapo’s son, Ovidio Guzman, in October 2019, violent protests broke out. This happened again in January 2023, when he was ultimately taken into custody.
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Since 2006, Mexico has experienced unrelenting violence linked to organised crime and drug trafficking, resulting in over 450,000 murders.
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