Mexico’s most wanted drug lord, “El Mencho”, aka Nemesio Oseguera Cervanteskilled in a military operation. A move that is not exactly improvised, but which comes after growing pressure from Trump on the Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaumaimed at making it tighten its actions against drug trafficking.
In fact, the States had warned that they could intervene directly if Mexico did not move more aggressively against the cartels. And so it was. But at what price?
The day after death El Mencho – the last of the drug trafficking lords capable of transforming very small gangs of traffickers into multinationals of crime – Mexico appears astonished, in the midst of an unprecedented wave of violence: schools closed, flights canceled and the football championship stopped, in a decidedly dramatic toll: at least 26 deaths, including a woman in the third month of pregnancy and 17 agents and representatives of the National Guard. Numbers that tell not only the severity of the clashes, but also the climate of instability that various areas of the country are experiencing.
The consequences are being felt far beyond the sites of the clashes. Several airlines have suspended flights to Mexico, while the Farnesina monitors the situation and invites Italians present in the country to limit travel. In several districts, schools suspended classes and some football games were canceled. Guatemala, meanwhile, has strengthened controls along the border.
When violence explodes in this way, it is always the communities who pay the highest price: broken families, affected economic activities, territories that see the social fabric further crack.
The words of president Claudia Sheinbaum
The president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardoentrusted a message to social media to reassure the population: he spoke of “full coordination with the governments of all states“, inviting us to stay informed and remain calm. He explained that the Security Cabinet’s social profiles are providing constant updates and that, in most of the country, activities are proceeding normally.
Sheinbaum further expressed “recognition of the Mexican Army, the National Guard, the Armed Forces and the Security Cabinet”, reiterating the daily commitment to peace, security, justice and well-being.
But beyond the institutional declarations, an open wound remains. Every episode of violence is a blow to collective trust. And while responsibility and answers are sought, the priority remains only one: to stop the spiral that continues to generate death and insecurity.
