What’s Happening in Mexico?
By Cecilia Fountain
On February 22, the leader of a Mexican cartel was killed, kicking off civil unrest and all of Mexico in a shelter in place.
Who was killed?
Nemesio Rubén Oseguera or El Mencho, was the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel which is an international criminal organization. Also known as CJNG (which is Spanish initials) the cartel runs much of Guadalajara and the outskirts of Jalisco. He died in Tapalpa, Jalisco, Mexico, of a gunshot wound while getting an air transfer to Mexico City. He was on the most wanted list for Mexico and his death led to more killing of civilians in the area. Reports of up to 70 deaths, 25 from National Guard, 30 to 34 cartel members, and 11 to 20 innocent civilians were killed.
Why and who killed him?
The Mexican Defense Department launched an operation in the southern part of Jalisco state to capture El Mencho using the Mexican Air Force and special forces. The cartel made a counterattack, which led to 4 of the cartel members being killed and 3 being wounded. One of whom was El Mancho.
Mexico has been wanting to crack down on cartel activity because the United States has been threatening to raise tariffs if it does not do so. On top of that the US State Department had a 15 million dollar reward since 2009 (when the cartel started) for any information on the whereabouts of El Mencho. Information indicates that the US had more to do with the background help in finding the cartel’s whereabouts. Meaning operations from both countries heavily played into the event.
After effects
Following the death, the cartel group has started to terrorize the areas where it’s most present. All over Guadalajara and Jalisco, the group is burning cars and buses as well as blocking roads in more than 20 Mexican states. School was canceled on February 23 (Monday) in many states as security forces were placed on alert all over the country. Guatemala has also reinforced its security on its border with Mexico. More than 1 million American tourists are stuck in Mexico due to the country’s lockdown. People who were trying to fly out during the day of the incident had to return to their hotels. However, the safety and security of these people have been the top priority for not just the US but also Mexico. Mexico is taking military steps to help stop the violence of the cartels. These steps are not well known to the public, but it is known that Mexican authorities are handling it quietly and quickly.
The US travel advisory says that travel should be advised in the major cities where the cartel is still most prominent. But in farther-reaching areas, travel is still safe for a spring break trip. What this means is that Mexico is geographically large and economically diverse, and safety conditions vary by state and even by neighborhood. A guided resort stay in a well-known tourist zone is a very different experience from independent travel through rural regions with higher crime statistics.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/what-to-know-about-the-mexican-armys-killing-of-the-powerful-cartel-leader-el-mencho
https://apnews.com/article/mexico-cartel-death-el-mencho-eade6e3695ef0d387271a9bc66
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2026/02/23/what-is-happening-in-mexico/88823261007/
https://www.wwlp.com/news/national/travel-warning-for-mexico-after-el-menchos-death-sparks-violence/
https://creators.yahoo.com/lifestyle/story/is-it-safe-to-travel-to-mexico-right-now-latest-advisory-explained-144815384.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAALHJHMFSUKOkj1kh62L1C4NknkQys6HHx9e2H54_6H7K1nZN98O3X15YHeg-Y08IabHVdbkr3_nsi6t9aNINQBMzGK1vbVbDK4lOo_O8DdhZvI0RN1s-1SCAg1qf4DEm2Nfl-Tp6F1C2lzp9jvLepvFxEL2h17X4JS-re6nLLH2m