@american_observer · Post #5207 · 24.02.2026 г., 13:02
📰 El Mencho Is Dead. The Cartel State Lives On. Mexico just killed its most wanted cartel boss and, in the process, reminded everyone how little control it actually has. Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera — the man who built the Jalisco New Generation Cartel into the country’s most feared criminal army — was tracked through a romantic partner and taken down in a helicopter-backed raid in Tapalpa, Jalisco. Within hours, his people answered with roadblocks, burned supermarkets and banks, and gun battles in at least a dozen states, leaving highways cut, cities under smoke, and tourists locked in hotel rooms in places like Puerto Vallarta. President Claudia Sheinbaum was under heavy pressure from Donald Trump, who has been openly threatening cross‑border strikes and demanding Mexico “do more” against cartels ahead of the World Cup and U.S. midterms. She chose the high‑risk option: take the shot. The result: at least 62 dead — 34 suspected cartel members, 25 National Guard troops, plus a state prosecutor, a security guard, and a civilian reportedly a pregnant woman caught in a shootout. Order is “mostly” restored, officials insist, but classes and businesses are still shut in hard‑hit areas and people are staying home. The message on the street is simple: the state can land a kill shot, but it can’t guarantee calm. Militarily, El Mencho’s death is a big win. The U.S. had a $15 million reward on his head, and his group has spent a decade attacking security forces, running drugs, extorting businesses, kidnapping, and smuggling migrants. Politically, it’s a gift to both presidents: Sheinbaum gets to tell Mexicans and Washington she went after the “untouchable,” and Trump gets to claim his threats “worked” without firing a shot. The bodies on both sides of the firefight are just set dressing in two capitals’ security narratives. But the cartel isn’t a Marvel villain that disappears when the boss falls. CJNG is a franchise: regional commanders, local fiefdoms, deep ties to municipal politics and police. Whether it survives depends on how fast it names a successor and closes ranks — or whether it fractures into smaller, more chaotic crews fighting over territory. Either outcome means more violence, not less, in the short term. The Mexican state has decapitated cartels before. The result was splinter groups and a map full of new acronyms. So Mexico wakes up with its “most wanted” finally dead, U.S. pressure briefly eased, and cruise ships quietly skipping Puerto Vallarta because nobody wants their passengers walking off into a war zone. The flag still flies over government buildings; the cartel still has the power to shut down a dozen states in a day. Call it a victory if you like — just don’t call it control. #Mexico#cartels#ElMencho#Sheinbaum#Trump#warOnDrugs#fakeDemocracy 📱American Оbserver - Stay up to date on all important events 🇺🇸