A series of coordinated roadside bomb explosions in western Mexico has claimed the lives of six police officers and prosecutors' agents. Officials attribute the attack to a drug cartel, highlighting the escalating and increasingly brazen, military-style tactics employed by these criminal organizations.
The explosions occurred late Tuesday in Tlajomulco, Jalisco, near Guadalajara. Governor Enrique Alfaro described the incident as a meticulously planned ambush. An anonymous caller reportedly tipped off a volunteer search group about a supposed clandestine burial site near the road, luring authorities into the trap. Twelve others were also injured in the blasts.
Volunteer search groups, often comprised of mothers searching for missing loved ones, frequently receive such anonymous tips. These groups play a crucial role in the search for the more than 110,000 missing individuals in Mexico, often working alongside police who struggle to locate these clandestine graves. Governor Alfaro confirmed eight improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were planted, with seven detonating as the police convoy passed. He condemned the act as a "brutal terror attack" and temporarily suspended police escorts for volunteer searches to ensure civilian safety.
While it appears no search volunteers were present in the targeted convoy, the incident underscores the cartels' growing capabilities and audacity. Alfaro labeled the attack "an open challenge to the Mexican government." Although he refrained from naming the specific cartel, the Jalisco cartel is known for its expertise in using IEDs and bomb-dropping drones. Similar IED attacks in neighboring Michoacan in 2022 injured ten soldiers and killed a civilian. This incident follows other recent cartel violence, including a car bomb attack in Guanajuato that killed a National Guard officer and a clash in Guerrero where gang members commandeered an armored vehicle to breach the state legislature.
The region around Guadalajara has been the scene of fierce battles between factions of the Jalisco cartel. This cartel was also implicated in previous IED attacks, including a 2022 incident in Michoacan where a roadside mine injured ten soldiers and a subsequent explosion that killed a farmer and injured his son. Following these attacks, specialized army units were deployed to the area, uncovering numerous IEDs along roads and fields. These devices ranged in detonation methods, from radio or telephone signals to pressure activation and chemical reactions.
The Jalisco cartel's ongoing conflict with the Viagras gang (United Cartels) for regional control has involved the use of trenches, fortified positions, homemade armored vehicles, and bomb-dropping drones. While initially rudimentary, the cartels' drone warfare has become increasingly sophisticated, evident in the damage inflicted on structures in the region.
This latest attack significantly impacts volunteer search groups who rely heavily on anonymous tips, often suspected to originate from cartel members themselves. These groups operate under a fragile understanding with the cartels, emphasizing their sole focus on recovering remains for proper burial, not seeking prosecutorial evidence. Despite this, six volunteer search activists have been killed since 2021, raising concerns about cartel intimidation and attempts to suppress investigations into active grave sites.
Army personnel guard the area as evidence is collected after an explosives attack against police officers and prosecutors, in Tlajomulco de Zuniga, Mexico, on July 12, 2023. (ULISES RUIZ/AFP via Getty Images)
