A senior Mexican army official said security in Sinaloa was in the hands of rivals of the Sinaloa cartel, who are locked in a fierce turf war that has left dozens dead in the past few days, rather than the country's military.
At a press conference this week, Gen. Jesús Leana Ojeda responded to questions from local journalists by saying the military could only patrol to minimize damage and seize weapons, but he ultimately attributed the violence to “hostile groups.”
“It's up to them. They are the ones who want to carry out the invasion, they are the ones who are taking lives,” Liana Ojeda said.
The general's comments came just one day after Mexico's top military command was forced to hold a press conference and acknowledge that 30 people had been killed since September 9 in a territorial dispute in the state of Sinaloa, leaving two Mexican soldiers dead and several others wounded.
At a second press conference, government officials called on media outlets to refrain from sensationalizing the situation so as not to spread fear among the public.
As Breitbart Texas reports, the violence came after weeks of tension as the two rival factions of the Sinaloa Cartel rallied together for a fierce turf war following the July 25 arrest of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada. The top drug lord had been called to a meeting by his godson, Joaquin Guzmán López, one of Sinaloa boss Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán's imprisoned sons. During the meeting, Guzmán had his armed men grab Zambada and put him on a plane to El Paso, Texas, where U.S. authorities were waiting.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist at Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas' Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. Twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
Brandon Darby is Managing Director and Editor in Chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas' Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and other senior Breitbart executives. Twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
