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15 bodies found in Mexican region affected by drug cartel violence

Posted on by Nargang
15 bodies found in Mexican region affected by drug cartel violence

The bodies of 15 people have been recovered from pits in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas, which was hit by drug cartel violence.

In a post on X, Chiapas state governor Eduardo Ramirez detailed an operation to restore stability in Frailesca, an agricultural region near Guatemala where rival cartels have been engaged in a turf war.

“Unfortunately, 15 bodies (have been found) so far in secret graves in two properties,” Ramirez wrote on social media on Saturday.

Army soldiers patrol the streets after clashes between armed groups in Pantelho, Chiapas state, Mexico. / Credit: ISAAC GUZMAN/AFP via Getty ImagesArmy soldiers patrol the streets after clashes between armed groups in Pantelho, Chiapas state, Mexico. / Credit: ISAAC GUZMAN/AFP via Getty Images

Army soldiers patrol the streets after clashes between armed groups in Pantelho, Chiapas state, Mexico. / Credit: ISAAC GUZMAN/AFP via Getty Images

He added that weapons, vehicles and drugs were also seized and four people were arrested, although he did not say if they were involved in the deaths of the 15 people.

Of Mexico cartel-related violence is concentrated in or along drug trafficking routes, borders and ports of entry.

The state of Chiapas has been described by think tank InSight Crime as “a major hub for both drug and migrant smuggling”.

In the last two years, Sinaloa and the Jalisco New Generation cartels engaged in bloody turf battles in Chiapas that involved the killing of entire families and the forcing of villages into the dispute. Hundreds of residents of Chiapas were forced to flee to neighboring Guatemala for their safety.

Since Mexico launched its controversial drug crackdown in 2006, there have been more than 450,000 murders and tens of thousands of people have disappeared, according to official figures.

In October, a well-known Catholic priest Marcelo Pérezwho was an activist for indigenous peoples and farm workers, was shot and killed in Chiapas.

Pérez, 50, had often received threats but still continued to work as a peace activist. Human rights advocates said Pérez did not receive the government protection he needed.

Residents walk past the facade of a house with bullet holes after clashes between armed groups in Pantelho, Chiapas state, Mexico. / Credit: ISAAC GUZMAN/AFP via Getty ImagesResidents walk past the facade of a house with bullet holes after clashes between armed groups in Pantelho, Chiapas state, Mexico. / Credit: ISAAC GUZMAN/AFP via Getty Images

Residents walk past the facade of a house with bullet holes after clashes between armed groups in Pantelho, Chiapas state, Mexico. / Credit: ISAAC GUZMAN/AFP via Getty Images

President Claudia Sheinbaum, who took office on October 1, pledged to follow the policy of her predecessor and mentor, former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, not to confront drug cartels. The policy has failed to significantly reduce violence.

On Thursday, Mexican authorities discovered 12 bodies buried in clandestine graves in northern Chihuahua state.

Authorities discovered 11 graves containing 12 skeletons in the town of Ascension, near the US border, the state attorney’s office said in a statement.

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