Army shields Mexico's border before wave of violence in Tamaulipas

After the general secretary of the Government of Tamaulipas was ambushed at dawn on July 3, the government of Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador reacted to the wave of violence that is sweeping the border area with Texas.

According to preliminary reports, Héctor Villegas was traveling in his vehicle when he was attacked; however, it is assured that he is fine.

Faced with such an event, the Secretary of National Defense announced the deployment of at least 100 soldiers from the Mexican Army to the municipalities of Nuevo Laredo, Reynosa and San Fernando, in order to reinforce operations in the state of Tamaulipas.

The main mission is to develop inter-agency operations that strengthen the rule of law, in addition to conducting ground reconnaissance and establishing military security posts in the strip border crossing of the state of Tamaulipas, according to the agency.

For them, the Army explained that these are personnel with specialized training and deployment capacity, weapons, material and equipment to carry out different types of activities, which which reinforces the operations that are carried out in coordination with other authorities.

According to specialists, for years Tamaulipas has been submerged in violence, mainly due to its geographical location, which makes it a key route for drug trafficking, migrant smuggling, and fuel theft.

Currently four cells of the Gulf Cartel, which are Los Metros, Los Ciclones, Los Rojos and Las Panteras, and two of Los Zetas, Vieja Escuela and the Northeast Cartel, would be behind the wave of violence in that area.

For this reason, on several occasions, in response to the insecurity situation that the entity is going through, the United States has classified Tamaulipas at level 4, which recommends not traveling to its territory.