Who is who in Mexico’s drug war?
Mexico has turned into a very violent country in the past few years due to drug-related fighting
More than 60,000 people have been killed since 2006 because of the disputes among rival drug gangs for control of different territories and drug purchase and selling routes. Who are these groups and who are they rivals with?
The Zetas Cartel:
They are Mexico’s largest and most powerful drug gang. They operate in more than half of Mexico’s state. They have committted some of the most brutal crimes in Latin America. They were once part of the Gulf cartel, but in 2010 they split from them.
They principally fight against the Gulf cartel and the Sinaloa cartel.
Their battleground goes from the Texas border to Guatemala and Colombia, crossing most of Mexican states.
Their operations include drug smuggling, kidnapping and illegally syphoning oil pipelines. Their brutal violence gives them an advantage over the Sinaloa cartel in terms of geographic presence.
However, the Zetas’ power weakened since they lost its leader Heriberto “El Lazca” Lazcano, who was killed by the Mexican military in October 2012. They substituted him for Miguel Angel Trevino, but he was arrested in July 2013.
The Gulf Cartel:
The Gulf cartel rised in the 1970s and it is based principally in the regions of Matamoros and Tamaulipas, which are in the border with Brownsville, Texas.
They have the most international network, and they trade with crime groups in Europe, West Africa, Asia, Central America, South America and the United States.
They are allies with the Sinaloa cartel and fight against the Zetas, who split from them in 2010. The cartel’s leaders have been Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez, known as “El Coss”, who was arrested in August 2012, and Mario Ramirez Treviño, who was arrested in August 2013. Since these two arrests, the cartel has lost a lot of power and influence in the country.
The Sinaloa Cartel:
The Sinaloa Cartel was founded in the 1970s and is considered by the US government as the most organized drug trafficking cartel in the world.
They are based in the city of Culiacán, in the Sinaloa state. They operate in the states of Baja California, Durango, Sonora and Chihuahua.
They produce most of Mexico’s opium and marijuana. According to the U.S. Attorney General, the Sinaloa Cartel is responsible for the import of nearly 200 tons of cocaine and large amounts of heroin between 1990 and 2008 in the United States.
The cartel’s leader is known as Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
Jalisco New Generation Cartel:
The Jalisco New Generation cartel has rised very recently and is growing very fast. They currently fight against the Zetas for the control of the states of Guadalajara, Jalisco and Veracruz. They also operate in the states of Nayarit, Michoacán, Colima and Guanajuato.
They have become allies with the Sinaloa cartel to fight against the Zetas cartel. They have tried to obtain the approval of the Mexican government to fight the Zetas openly.
The second leader of the cartel, known as “El Menchito”, has been recently arrested by Mexican forces.
The Knights Templar Cartel:
The Knights Templar cartel is a split up of La Familia Michoacana drug cartel. They operate principally in the state of Michoacán, but they also carry out operations in the states of Guerrero, Mexico and Morelos.
They formed a separated drug cartel from that of La Familia Michoacana when Nazario Moreno González, the leader of the cartel, died. Enrique Plancarte Solís, Servando Gómez Martínez and Dionicio Loya Plancarte, known as “El Tío” were the ones who formed the Knights Templar cartel. “El Tío” has recently been arrested by Mexican forces.
The Knights Templar cartel claims to protect the civilians of the states they operate in from the attacks of other rival drug cartels, such as the Zetas and the Jalisco New Generation drug cartel. Its armed wing is a group called La Resistencia.
They also fight against the Vigilantes group, which is an armed group composed by civilians who try to sabotage the cartel’s operations in Michoacán. The Vigilantes group state that the Mexican forces don’t work hard enough to stop the influence the Knights Templar is achieving recently, which is why they are carrying out an armed fight against the cartel.
