Mexican Authorities Single Out 10 Municipalities In Need Of Priority Attention Due to Cartel-Related Violence

SEATTLE - Crime and violence in Mexico continue to be out of control and the month of November has not been any different. According to data from the Secretariat of Security and Civilian Protection, 88 homicides were reported in November 1 alone.

The state of Guanajuato was the entity with the most homicides reported that day with eight, followed by Colima and Morelos, both with seven. Other centric states such as Jalisco and Guerrero have also seen an elevated number of homicides in recent weeks, but as authorities persist on containing criminal organizations all across Mexico, they are channeling their focus to certain parts of the territory where drug cartels tend to carry out their illicit businesses.

According to Gustavo Castillo García, a journalist for La Jornada, law enforcement and Mexican armed forces have concentrated a lot of their efforts in six states, primarily located in northern Mexico and along the Pacific Ocean coast.

The journalist signaled Sinaloa, Chihuahua, Nuevo León, Baja California, Nayarit and Sonora as the states were authorities are spending most of their time and efforts to control the wave of violence that has escalated since the Sinaloa Cartel factions known as "Los Chapitos" and "La Mayiza" began fighting for drug smuggling routes all over Mexico.

As one of her first decrees when sworn in as president, Claudia Sheinbaum launched a strategy that singled out 10 municipalities that are key for cartels in their drug enterprise. Titled "Estrategia de Seguridad de los Primeros 100 días," or Security Strategy for the First 100 Days, the strategy aims to neutralize criminal networks as well as capturing generators of violence in those regions.

Tijuana, León, Celaya, Ciudad Juárez and Acapulco are some of those municipalities that, according to Sheinbaum and her security cabinet, needed "priority attention" due to their high level of homicides reported in recent months.

And although homicide numbers continue to escalate, Sheinbaum's administration has made several arrests of high-profile cartel members and leaders in some of the places considered to be in need of "priority attention."

In late October, authorities captured Edwin Antonio Rubio López, a.k.a "El Max," who is believed to have a close relationship to Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada.

Similarly, the Sinaloa Cartel's leadership suffered another blow to its enterprise in the state of Nuevo León when José Enrique "N," alias "El Güero Huachicol" was captured by members of the National Guard and the Mexican Army near Monterrey.

Mexican Armed forces made more than 27,000 arrests in 2023

According to data from the Iberoamericana University, military personnel and members of the National Guard made a total of 27,022 arrests across Mexico last year.

The university has been tracking arrests and confrontations between Mexican armed forces and cartels since former President Felipe Calderón launched his so-called "guerra contra el narco" in 2006. During that span, Tamaulipas, Colima and Sonora are the entities with the highest number of arrests made by military personnel.

Since 2020, the state that leads the nation in this regard is Sonora, one of the entities labelled by Sheinbaum in need of priority attention.