Schools shut, troops on streets: Mexico on alert after ‘El Mencho’ killing

Authorities deploy 10,000 soldiers nationwide to quell violence following the drug lord’s killing in a military operation.Published On 24 Feb 2026Mexico remains on high alert after a wave of reprisal attacks triggered by the killing of its most wanted drug cartel leader, even as President Claudia Sheinbaum claimed the country is at peace and life is returning to normal.Some 10,000 soldiers have been deployed across 20 of Mexico’s 32 states to maintain order following the killing of Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera in a military operation about 130km (80 miles) from Guadalajara city on Sunday.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘El Mencho’ killing sparks ‘overwhelming fear’ as violence erupts in Mexicolist 2 of 4Who was ‘El Mencho’? What drug lord’s killing means for Mexicolist 3 of 4Who are Mexico’s top cartel bosses killed or arrested in recent years?list 4 of 4El Mencho’s killing won’t solve Mexico’s cartel problem – or anything elseend of listGuadalajara is the capital of western Mexico’s Jalisco state – the stronghold of Oseguera’s Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) – where at least 2,000 soldiers have been sent.Schools in Guadalajara and several other Mexican cities were closed on Monday. However, public transport partially resumed, though buses carried few passengers, as people witnessed a slow return to normalcy.Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch said on Monday that at least 74 people were killed, including 25 National Guard officers, in the operation that killed the cartel boss and the subsequent violence over the killing of the 59-year-old drug kingpin, one of the most wanted men in Mexico and the United States.Burned-out vehicles are seen on the boardwalk in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico [Arturo Montero/EPA]“El Mencho” was considered the last of the drug lords who acted in the brutal mould of the now-imprisoned Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, of the rival Sinaloa Cartel. He was a founding member of CJNG, which was formed in 2009 and has grown into one of Mexico’s most violent crime organisations.