Mexican cartel clashes fuel worries in lead up to FIFA World Cup

Mexican cartel clashes fuel worries in lead up to FIFA World Cup 1 of 8 | Twenty-five members of the Mexican National Guard were left dead in six separate attacks after special forces killed the notorious leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the country’s security secretary said Monday as much of Mexico feared more violence. (AP/ Megan Janetsky) 2 of 8 | The Mexican Army killed the leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” on Sunday, decapitating what had become Mexico’s most powerful drug cartel and thrusting swaths of the nation into chaos. Cars burned out by cartel members blocked roads at more than 250 points in 20 Mexican states, authorities said, and left smoke billowing into the air. Jalisco’s capital, Guadalajara, was turned into a ghost town Sunday night as civilians hunkered down. 3 of 8 | Rows of burnt-out trucks, buses and cars blocked roads outside the capital of Mexico’s Jalisco state on Monday, a day after the Mexican Army killed the country’s most powerful drug lord. (AP video shot by: Alexis Triboulard) 4 of 8 | Vehicles pass a burned car a day after the Mexican Army killed the leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) 5 of 8 | Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum gives her the daily, morning news conference at the National Palace in Mexico-city" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="1779" data-entity-type="location">Mexico City, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, the day after the Mexican Army killed Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” (AP Photo/Ginnette Riquelme) 6 of 8 | A body lies beside a bullet-riddled vehicle in Tapalpa, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, a day after the Mexican Army killed Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) 7 of 8 | A charred truck blocks a road the day after the Mexican Army killed Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) 8 of 8 | This wanted poster released on Dec. 4, 2024 on the U.S. State Department website shows leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” (U.S. State Department via AP) 1 of 8 Twenty-five members of the Mexican National Guard were left dead in six separate attacks after special forces killed the notorious leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the country’s security secretary said Monday as much of Mexico feared more violence. (AP/ Megan Janetsky) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 2 of 8 The Mexican Army killed the leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” on Sunday, decapitating what had become Mexico’s most powerful drug cartel and thrusting swaths of the nation into chaos. Cars burned out by cartel members blocked roads at more than 250 points in 20 Mexican states, authorities said, and left smoke billowing into the air. Jalisco’s capital, Guadalajara, was turned into a ghost town Sunday night as civilians hunkered down. Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 3 of 8 Rows of burnt-out trucks, buses and cars blocked roads outside the capital of Mexico’s Jalisco state on Monday, a day after the Mexican Army killed the country’s most powerful drug lord. (AP video shot by: Alexis Triboulard) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 4 of 8 Vehicles pass a burned car a day after the Mexican Army killed the leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 5 of 8 Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum gives her the daily, morning news conference at the National Palace in Mexico-city" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="1779" data-entity-type="location">Mexico City, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, the day after the Mexican Army killed Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” (AP Photo/Ginnette Riquelme) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 6 of 8 A body lies beside a bullet-riddled vehicle in Tapalpa, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, a day after the Mexican Army killed Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 7 of 8 A charred truck blocks a road the day after the Mexican Army killed Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 8 of 8 This wanted poster released on Dec. 4, 2024 on the U.S. State Department website shows leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” (U.S. State Department via AP) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] TAPALPA, Mexico (AP) — Maria Dolores Aguirre’s family corner store has lived off tourism that has flowed into her charming cobblestoned town of Tapalpa, tucked away in the mountains of Jalisco state.That was until gunshots erupted and helicopters flew overhead as the Mexican Army killed the country’s most powerful drug lord, just a few kilometers (miles) from her home.Now, the 50-year-old Aguirre worries that the bloodshed will deal a blow to her livelihood and change towns like hers. It is something many in the western Mexican state are grappling with, from its Pacific Ocean beaches to its capital Guadalajara that will host matches in June for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.“It’s going to affect us. It’s collateral damage,” Aguirre said. “The government is going to have to have a lot of security. … The entire world just saw what happened and, of course, people are going to think twice about coming.” Fighting between the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel and Mexican security forces raged on in a number of states Monday, fueling fears among many like Aguirre that there will be more violence to come. More than 70 people died in the attempt to capture Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes and its aftermath, authorities said Monday. Known as “El Mencho,” he was the notorious leader of the Jalisco-new-generation-cartel" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="15215" data-entity-type="organization">Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of the fastest-growing criminal networks in Mexico, known for trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine to the United States and staging brazen attacks against Mexican government officials. The White House confirmed that the U.S. provided intelligence support to the operation to capture the cartel leader and applauded Mexico’s army for taking down a man who was one of the most wanted criminals in both countries. The U.S. State Department had offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to the arrest of “El Mencho.” The death of Oseguera Cervantes came as Mexico’s government has stepped up its offensive against cartels in an effort to meet demands by U.S. President Donald Trump to crack down on criminal groups, threatening to impose more tariffs or take unilateral military action if the country does not show results.Mexico hoped the death of one of the world’s biggest fentanyl traffickers would ease that pressure, but many people were anxious as they waited to see the powerful cartel’s reaction.Oseguera Cervantes died after a shootout with the Mexican military on Sunday. Mexican Defense Secretary Gen. Ricardo Trevilla said Monday that authorities had tracked one of his romantic partners to his hideout in Tapalpa. The cartel leader and two bodyguards fled into a wooded area where they were seriously wounded in a firefight. They were taken into custody and died on the way to Mexico-city" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="1779" data-entity-type="location">Mexico City, Trevilla said.In the aftermath, a sense of unease simmered in tourist towns.The Pacific Ocean resort city of Puerto Vallarta also was hard hit by cartel reprisals, frightening tourists.Steve Perkins, 57, was visiting Puerto Vallarta with his wife Gayle and some friends. They were on their hotel room’s terrace when explosions and black smoke started appearing around the city Sunday morning. Their return to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, was delayed when their flight was canceled Monday and they were rebooked for March 1. Perkins and his wife have been taking annual trips to Puerto Vallarta since 2012 and have always felt safe, until now. He said they don’t plan on returning to Mexico.“There’s a lot of Americans trapped here,” Perkins said.Back in Tapalpa, Aguirre worked next to her son from the small neighborhood shop her family has owned for 50 years. The 15-year-old’s classes were canceled due to the violence. Aguirre said it was unclear who exactly was in control of the area surrounding her: the military or the cartel. The other question on her mind was if this was just a one-off, or if there was more violence to come.“We don’t know if these people (cartel leaders) are permanently here or not,” she said. “If they really did kill this leader, it could be that they fight between each other to win control or see who will lead it.”__AP writer Juan Lozano in Houston contributed to this report. Megan Janetsky covers migration, conflict, human rights and politics in Mexico and Central America for The AP based in Mexico-city" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="1779" data-entity-type="location">Mexico City. Previously, she covered Cuba and the Caribbean for The AP and worked as freelance journalist in Colombia, reporting across South America.