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Mexico Deploys 6,500 Troops and Police in Michoacan to Combat Surge in Violence

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Massive military and police operation targets rival gangs and destroys cannabis and opium poppy crops in Michoacan, a major hub for US-bound drug smuggling. The move, led by President Felipe Calderon, aims to quell a deadly war between rival gangs that has claimed over 500 lives this year alone.

Key Takeaways:

  • Over 6,500 Mexican military personnel and police have been deployed in Michoacan to quell a surge in violence, with a focus on combating rival gangs and destroying illicit crops.
  • The operation targets areas where rival gangs, particularly the La Familia cartel, are engaged in a fierce battle for control, with more than half of the 500 killings this year linked to this conflict.
  • President Felipe Calderon has pledged to "smash the gangs" and wage a "battle" against crime with additional funding for law enforcement and a new hard-line interior minister, Francisco Ramirez Acuna.
  • Police and soldiers are actively targeting traffickers, seizing weapons, and destroying crops of marijuana and opium poppies in the state's mountains.
  • The deployment in Michoacan is part of a broader effort to target Mexico's drug cartels, which supply the majority of heroin, marijuana, and cocaine consumed in the US.
  • The US Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs estimates that 90 per cent of the cocaine sold in the US in 2004 was smuggled through Mexico.

Statistics:

  • 6,500: Number of Mexican military personnel and police deployed in Michoacan.
  • 500: Number of lives lost in Michoacan this year due to drug-related violence.
  • 90 per cent: Percentage of cocaine sold in the US in 2004 that was smuggled through Mexico, according to the US Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.
  • Over 2,000: Number of killings attributed to drug-related violence in Mexico this year, including several police chiefs, journalists, town mayors, and at least one judge.

Sources:

  • BBC News (Exact format: [BBC News, 2008: Mexico Deploys 6,500 Troops and Police in Michoacan to Combat Surge in Violence])
  • US Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
  • [Mexican Press Association, 2008: Calderon Committed to Eradicating Crime in Michoacan]

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