Security in Sinaloa is Up to Cartels not Military, says Mexican General

A top Mexican Army general claimed that security in the state of Sinaloa is not up to the country’s military but rather to the rival faction of the Sinaloa Cartel that is waging a fierce turf war that left dozens dead in a matter of days.

During a news conference this week, General Jesus Leana Ojeda responded to questions from local journalists and stated the military could only patrol to minimize the damage and make weapons seizures. Still, ultimately, the violence was up to “antagonistic groups,” he explained.

“It is up to them, they are the ones that want to carry out the aggressions and they are the ones taking lives,” Leana Ojeda said.

The general’s comments came just one day before Mexico’s top brass gave a news conference where they were forced to confirm that since September 9, there have been 30 killings, two Mexican soldiers killed, and several others injured in the Sinaloa turf war.

During that second news conference, government officials called on news outlets not to be sensationalist so as not to spread fear among the public.

As Breitbart Texas has been reporting, the violence comes after weeks of tension as two rival factions of the Sinaloa Cartel built up their forces for a fierce turf war following the arrest of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada on July 25. The top drug lord had been called to a meeting by his godson Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of the sons of jailed Sinaloa Kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. It was during that meeting that Guzman had his gunmen capture Zambada, place him in an airplane, and flew him to El Paso, Texas, where U.S. authorities were waiting for them.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.