The Real 'El Chapo'

A very interesting post from www.Stratfor.com  about Chapo Guzman. This follows this post about some people attempting to place blame for migrant deaths on the United States. This follows this post about Mexican drug lords and anchor babies. This follows this post about Mexico and the U.S. Border Patrol. This follows this article about American energy independence and preventing money from going to hostile countries such as Iran . For more about what is happening in the nation now click here and you can read a very interesting book HERE.


The Real 'El Chapo'


Stratfor

By Scott Stewart



A widely propagated myth would have us believe that Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera and his Sinaloa Federation are less violent than many of their competitors. Statements from journalists and analysts allege that Sinaloa is more businesslike than Los Zetas, whose reputation for brutality is well-documented, and that this business savvy somehow renders the group relatively benign. In turn, this has led many to believe that the Mexican government could broker a deal with the leader of one of Mexico's largest criminal organizations.



However, a close examination of Sinaloa's evolution demonstrates the group is hardly the hallmark of civility. In fact, the history of Mexico's cartel wars over the past decade reveals that Guzman, his Sinaloa Federation and the various cartels with which they partner have been more territorially aggressive than any other Mexican cartel.



Expansion and Escalation

Sinaloa incursions upset the balance of power that Miguel Angel "El Padrino" Felix Gallardo established in the late 1980s when he appropriated criminal territories to Guzman and his other lieutenants. Tens of thousands of people have died from the wars that arose from this imbalance.



This is because Guzman's expansion efforts necessarily entailed encroaching on a rival's turf. In the early 1990s, he sent forces from Sinaloa state into Tijuana, Baja California state -- controlled at the time by the Arellano Felix brothers -- to buy stash houses and construct a tunnel for moving drugs across the border. In response, the brothers tortured and killed Sinaloa operatives in Tijuana; they even tried to assassinate Guzman. Sinaloa retaliated in November 1992, when its operatives tried to kill Francisco Javier and Ramon Arellano Felix in a Puerto Vallarta nightclub.



The Sinaloa-Arellano Felix brothers war marked the beginning of an escalation in Mexico's cartel war. Cartels began to hire police officers to work as enforcers. Eventually, the Gulf cartel formed Los Zetas, a group largely composed of former soldiers from Mexican Airmobile Special Forces. Cartel warfare thus was militarized. Enforcer groups were no longer untrained thugs with guns; they were trained fire teams that knew how to maneuver and use their weapons.



Seeking shelter from the Arellano Felix brothers, Guzman fled to Guatemala but was arrested in June of 1993. He was extradited to Mexico, where he continued to run his criminal enterprises from the safety of a prison cell until he escaped in January 2001.





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When Gulf cartel leader Osiel Cardenas Guillen was arrested in March 2003, Guzman saw an opportunity to make a move on the Gulf cartel's territory, especially the lucrative plaza of Nuevo Laredo, the busiest point of entry for trucks into the United States from Mexico that provides direct access to the Interstate Highway 35 corridor.



Guzman's push into Nuevo Laredo was spearheaded by the Beltran Leyva brothers, who convinced local gangs such as Los Chachos to turn against the Gulf cartel. Beltran Leyva gunmen aided local forces, and eventually a hybrid group was formed when a U.S. citizen and member of Los Chachos named Edgar "La Barbie" Valdez Villarreal assumed command of Sinaloa enforcer group Los Negros.



Los Zetas responded strongly to the Sinaloa incursion into Nuevo Laredo and a bloody struggle erupted for control of the city. By mid-2005, law and order had almost completely broken down in Nuevo Laredo, and then-President Vicente Fox deployed federal police and army units to take control of the town. But even these forces proved insufficient to stop the violence, which persisted for three years until it became evident that Los Zetas were not going to be defeated. By that time, Guzman had begun focusing on other places to expand.



A Boss of Many Groups

On Sept. 11, 2004, Sinaloa hit men gunned down Rodolfo Carrillo Fuentes, a leader of the Vicente Carrillo Fuentes organization, also known as the Juarez cartel, as he left a theater in Culiacan, Sinaloa state. Rodolfo's brother Vicente retaliated by having Guzman's brother murdered in prison. This chain of events set off a war between the two organizations for control of the Juarez and Chihuahua City plazas that continues to this day. (While the Juarez cartel is just a shadow of its former self -- Sinaloa has all but consolidated control of Chihuahua state -- Chihuahua nonetheless remains the second-deadliest state in Mexico because of this struggle.)



Sinaloa meanwhile had resumed its efforts to control Tijuana. A string of arrests and the deaths of the Arellano Felix brothers, who constituted the core leadership of the Arellano Felix Organization, severely degraded the group's operational capability. In early 2008, internal fighting between the faction loyal to the Arellano Felix brothers' successor, Luis Fernando "El Ingeniero" Sanchez Arellano, and those loyal to the group's top enforcer, Teodoro "El Teo" Garcia Simental, further degraded the organization. This conflict sparked marked levels of violence in the region until Mexican federal police dismantled the Garcia faction.



Desperate for support against Sanchez Arellano, Garcia sought protection from the Sinaloa Federation, which he knew had been trying to claim Tijuana for years. Ultimately the strategy failed, but the protracted battle left the Sanchez Arellano faction of the AFO extremely weak. In the latter half of 2010, the Sinaloa Federation used the opening afforded by Garcia to solidify control over parts of western Baja California state, namely the Tecate and Mexicali regions, positioning itself to seize Tijuana.



Knowing it could not withstand another lengthy battle against a much larger and resourceful group, the AFO struck a deal with Sinaloa whereby both groups would operate independently and abide by a non-aggression pact. With Tijuana secured, Sinaloa controlled the plazas from Juarez west to Tijuana.



In a similar scenario, the Gulf cartel turned to Sinaloa and La Familia Michoacana for help against Los Zetas, which had broken off from its parent group in early 2010. The three groups formed an alliance that referred to itself as the New Federation. Guzman's attention once again was drawn to the lucrative smuggling corridors in the northeast. With help from Sinaloa and La Familia Michoacana gunmen, the Gulf cartel was able to push Los Zetas out of Reynosa, and by mid-2010, Los Zetas were under heavy pressure from the forces of the New Federation. However, several events that year, including the July 29 death of Guzman's close ally, Ignacio "El Nacho" Coronel, and the Dec. 10 death of La Familia Michoacana leader Nazario "El Mas Loco" Moreno Gonzalez, gave Los Zetas an opportunity to recover.



In 2011, Sinaloa undertook another major incursion into Los Zetas territory, this time targeting Veracruz. In doing so, it used another proxy group as muscle -- the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion, comprising the remnants of Coronel's organization that traveled across Mexico from their home turf in Guadalajara. Sometimes operating under the moniker Los Matazetas, the CJNG began killing Los Zetas -- and people it believed to be Los Zetas supporters -- in Veracruz. In late September and early October of 2011, the CJNG conducted several high-profile body dumps of individuals deemed Los Zetas. In one incident on Sept. 20, 2011, 35 bodies were dumped on a street in heavy traffic. It was later determined that most of these victims were not members of Los Zetas.



As the CJNG shows, the Sinaloa cartel has formed several enforcer groups over the past decade. These groups have included Los Negros, the CJNG, La Gente Nueva (also known as Los Chapos) and Los Antrax. Such organizations operate under their own names, just as Los Zetas did when they were the armed wing of the Gulf cartel. But like Los Zetas, who acted on behalf on the Gulf cartel, Sinaloa enforcers act at the behest of Guzman and his lieutenants.



Instances of Sinaloa brutality abound. Los Negros leader Valdez tortured and executed four Los Zetas members in a video sent to the Dallas Morning News; the CJNG dumped 35 bodies in downtown Veracruz; and Sinaloa enforcers left groups of dismembered bodies in Nuevo Laredo accompanied by narcomantas signed "El Chapo" on several occasions between March and May of 2012. These are actions of the Sinaloa cartel, and they are every bit as vicious as the actions of other groups.



Some believe that peace ensues once the Sinaloa cartel asserts its control over an area, but that is not necessarily true. Violence decreased in Juarez after Sinaloa wrested control of the plaza, but Chihuahua continues to struggle with violence. In fact, three of the four most violent states in Mexico -- Chihuahua, Sinaloa and Guerrero -- are in Sinaloa's area of control. There are no quick solutions to Mexico's violence, and there is no reason to believe a government pact with Guzman would prove otherwise.



Editor's Note: We now offer the daily Mexico Security Monitor, an additional custom intelligence service geared toward organizations with operations or interests in the region, designed to provide more detailed and in-depth coverage of the situation. To learn more about this new fee-based custom service, visit www.stratfor.com/msm .





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Hizballah setting up operations in Mexico, near border

A very interesting post from  http://www.jihadwatch.org/ about Hezbollah in Mexico. This follows this post about HAMAS and FATAH laying aside their differences. This follows this post  about Miss USA 2010 and this article about the recent news about the former ban on offshore drilling which would encourage American energy independence and prevent money from going to hostile countries such as Iran   and Venezuela. For more that you can do to get involved click HERE and read this very interesting book HERE!

Hizballah setting up operations in Mexico, near border


"If they really wanted to start blowing stuff up, they could do it."



"Terrorist Group Setting Up Operations Near Border: Hezbollah Considered To Be More Advanced Than Al-Qaida," from 10News.com, May 4 (thanks to David):



SAN DIEGO -- A terrorist organization whose home base is in the Middle East has established another home base across the border in Mexico.

"They are recognized by many experts as the 'A' team of Muslim terrorist organizations," a former U.S. intelligence agent told 10News.



The former agent, referring to Shi'a Muslim terrorist group Hezbollah, added, "They certainly have had successes in big-ticket bombings."



Some of the group's bombings include the U.S. embassy in Beirut and Israeli embassy in Argentina.



However, the group is now active much closer to San Diego.



"We are looking at 15 or 20 years that Hezbollah has been setting up shop in Mexico," the agent told 10News.



Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, U.S. policy has focused on al-Qaida and its offshoots.



"They are more shooters than thinkers … it's a lot of muscles, courage, desire but not a lot of training," the agent said, referring to al-Qaida.



Hezbollah, he said, is far more advanced.



"Their operators are far more skilled … they are the equals of Russians, Chinese or Cubans," he said. "I consider Hezbollah much more dangerous in that sense because of strategic thinking; they think more long-term."



Hezbolah has operated in South America for decades and then Central America, along with their sometime rival, sometime ally Hamas.



Now, the group is blending into Shi'a Muslim communities in Mexico, including Tijuana. Other pockets along the U.S.-Mexico border region remain largely unidentified as U.S. intelligence agencies are focused on the drug trade.



"They have had clandestine training in how to live in foreign hostile territories," the agent said. [...]



"If they really wanted to start blowing stuff up, they could do it," the agent said.



According to the agent, the organization sees the U.S. as their "cash cow," with illegal drug and immigration operations. Many senior Hezbollah leaders are wealthy businessmen, the agent said.



"The money they are sending back to Lebanon is too important right now to jeopardize those operations," he said.



The agent said the real concern is the group's long-term goal of radicalizing Muslim communities.



"They're focusing on developing … infiltrating communities within North America," the agent told 10News.



Posted by Robert

Outrage: Americans assassinated in Mexico!

This is an interesting article from http://www.alipac.us/ about an assassination of Americans in Juarez. This follows this post about similar events happening worldwide. Of course an effective way to dry up money rogue states like these is to allow domestic offshore oil drilling which sends revenues to nations like Iran and Venezuela and everybody concerned about anti-American violence in Mexico should support this. For more posts like this click here.


Outrage: Americans assassinated in Mexico!
3 people associated with U.S. consulate killed in Mexico March 14, 2010 1:31 p.m. EDT (CNN) -- Three people connected to the U.S. consulate in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, were killed in a drive-by shooting in the violent border city, a senior White House official told CNN Sunday. One of the victims was an American employee at the consulate. Her husband and the husband of a Mexican employee of the consulate were also killed. The shooting happened Saturday afternoon, the official said. Details of the killings were not immediately available, but the news had reached the White House. "The President is deeply saddened and outraged by the news of the brutal murders of three people associated with the United States Consulate General in Ciudad Juarez," National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer said in a statement Sunday. "He extends his condolences to the families and condemns these attacks on consular and diplomatic personnel serving at our foreign missions. In concert with Mexican authorities, we will work tirelessly to bring their killers to justice." In response, the U.S. State Department authorized the temporary relocation of employees' families working in border-area consulates. The families of employees at U.S. consulates in Tijuana, Nogales, Ciudad Juarez, Nuevo Laredo, Monterrey and Matamoros are allowed to leave for a period of 30 days "in response to an increase in violence along the Mexican side of its border with the U.S.," State Department spokesman Fred Lash told CNN. After 30 days, the authorization can be renewed, depending on a review, Lash said, adding that this was not a mandatory evacuation. Ciudad Juarez is one of the frontlines in Mexico's war against the drug cartels that operate in its territory. Juarez, located on the border across from El Paso, Texas, has become a focal point of Mexican President Felipe Calderon's anti-drug efforts after the January 31 killings of 15 people there, most of whom were students with no ties to organized crime. The incident sparked outrage across Mexico. The government has not released official figures, but national media say 7,600 Mexicans lost their lives in the war on drugs in 2009. Calderon said last year that 6,500 Mexicans died in drug violence in 2008. Meanwhile, farther south in Mexico, at least 25 people were killed in a series of violent incidents in the western Mexican state of Guerrero on Saturday, state officials said. The bodies of 14 people, including nine civilians and five police officers, were found in various parts of the resort city of Acapulco, the official Notimex news agency reported, citing Guerrero Public Security Secretary Juan Heriberto Salinas. In the small city of Ajuchitlan del Progreso, 10 civilians and one soldier were killed in two shootouts that started when federal officials tried to carry out search warrants on two locations, Salinas said. Police in the state were on a heightened security alert, he said. ----U.S. official, husband killed in Ciudad Juarez President 'outraged;' families of consulate staff along border urged to leave Interactive: Mexican drug cartels Learn more about how Mexican drug cartels are extending their reach farther into the U.S. msnbc.com staff and news service reports updated 50 minutes ago Two Americans, a U.S. consulate employee and her husband, were killed in a drive-by shooting in Ciudad Juarez, the Mexican border city wracked by drug violence, the White House said Sunday. President Barack Obama "is deeply saddened and outraged by the news of the brutal murders," National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer said in a statement. A third person, the husband of a U.S. consulate employee, was also killed in the shooting Saturday night. The White House did not indicate what steps it might take, but Hammer said the administration would "continue to work with Mexican President Felipe Calderon and his government to break the power of the drug trafficking organizations that operate in Mexico and far too often target and kill the innocent. " Simultaneously, the State Department authorized all U.S. government employees at six U.S. consulates in northern Mexico to send their family members out of the area because of concerns about rising drug-related violence, including the post in Ciudad Juarez. And travelers were warned against visiting northern areas of Mexico. "Recent violent attacks have prompted the U.S. Embassy to urge U.S. citizens to delay unnecessary travel to parts of Durango, Coahuila and Chihuahua states and advise U.S. citizens residing or traveling in those areas to exercise extreme caution," the State Department said in a bulletin. "Drug cartels and associated criminal elements have retaliated violently against individuals who speak out against them or whom they otherwise view as a threat to their organizations." Calderon has deployed tens of thousands of troops to drug-trafficking hotspots across Mexico in an effort to root out cartels. Gang violence has surged since the crackdown began three years ago, claiming more than 17,900 lives. 24 killed in, around Acapulco Also Saturday, 13 people were killed in and around the Mexican beach resort of Acapulco, with four victims found beheaded, security officials said. Another gunbattle in the state left 11 people dead. Five of those killed were police officers whose night-time patrol was ambushed by gunmen early Saturday in Tuncingo, a rural area on the outskirts of the Pacific coast resort city. The bullet-riddled bodies of eight other men were discovered in different areas around Acapulco in apparent drug-related killings, officials said. Two of the decapitated men were found on a scenic road packed with nightclubs. The violence occurred as thousands of U.S. college students started arriving in the area for spring break. Any resurgence in violence would be bad news for the country's tourism industry. Last June, at least 18 people were killed in a shootout between drug gangs and soldiers in Acapulco, which is home to around a million people. Shootout with soldiers More violence apparently linked to drugs flared later Saturday in Guerrero state, where Acapulco is located, with Mexican soldiers exchanging fire with gunmen, the newspaper Reforma reported. One soldier and 10 gunmen were killed in the shootout in the town of Ajuchitlan del Progreso, the newspaper said. Valentin Diaz, director of the Guerrero state investigative police, said the gunfight erupted in the middle of the day in the center of the town as it was full of bystanders. Several cartels are fighting over drug-dealing turf and trafficking routes in Guerrero. Gang violence occurs almost every day in the state, but Saturday was unusually bloody. Farther to the south in the state of Chiapas, which borders Guatemala, a grenade explosion inside a car killed one man and wounded another. State prosecutors said the dead man was holding the weapon when it exploded. Investigators believe the victim belonged to the Zetas drug gang and had been about to throw the grenade at federal police offices in the state capital, Tuxtla Gutierrez.
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Day of the Dead and Border Deaths

An interesting post from www.vdare.com about some people attempting to place blame for migrant deaths on the United States.

Day of the Dead and Border Deaths
[Allan Wall]
November 2nd is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), the Mexican form of All Souls’ Day.It’s also being taken advantage of by Mexican activists who blame U.S. immigration policy for border deaths. The Associated Press reported on Oct. 30th that
Rights activists in the northern Mexican border city of Tijuana have hung 5,100 small white crosses on the fence straddling the U.S. frontier to commemorate migrants who have died trying to cross… The crosses represent the number of migrants estimated to have died in the 15 years since the United States toughened border security.
Mexican Activists Place 5,100 Crosses at Border Fence to Mark Migrant Deaths, Associated Press, Oct. 30th, 2009
These activists have it backwards. If the U.S. were really serious about border control, interior immigration enforcement, and the elimination of benefits for illegal aliens, then thousands of Mexican lives would be saved. Probably most of those 5,100 people would be alive, in Mexico.But are these activists really concerned about saving lives, or about utilizing death to promote their agenda?So I say, Stop Death in the Desert - Build the Border Wall!