00:03Deadly violence sparked by the military killing of an infamous cartel leader has
00:07now spread across at least two-thirds of Mexico's states, with experts warning it
00:11could trigger a total war in the country. Reports of raging gun battles with
00:16authorities and terrifying images of torched buildings and vehicles paint a
00:21dire picture of the sudden chaos within the country, as American citizens near
00:25the border have been warned to shelter in place while flights are being canceled.
00:30So what exactly is going on in Mexico? Here's everything you need to know.
00:35At least 20 of Mexico's 31 states have seen violent clashes in the wake of the
00:40death of the country's most wanted man, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, head of the
00:45Jalisco New Generation Cartel, or CJNG in its Spanish initials. Oseguera Cervantes,
00:52better known as El Mencho, died in custody on Sunday, February 22nd, shortly after
00:58being captured by Mexican special forces in a violent shootout in Tepalpa, within
01:03the Jalisco state. One gruesome clip taken by a Mexican soldier allegedly involved in
01:08the firefight shows a bullet casing lodged in his face following the raid. Narco
01:14gangs responded to El Mencho's death by blockading highways, setting cars ablaze,
01:19and torching businesses as part of their retaliation over the crime boss's death.
01:24A harrowing video taken from the Guanahonto province shows a screaming woman with her clothes
01:29on fire, bursting out of a burning convenience store as horrified bystanders attempt to put
01:34out the flames. Violence spread quickly along the country's west coast, reaching up to
01:39the U.S. border with California. Dozens of people, including cartel members, National Guard
01:45members and civilians have been declared dead as a result of the clashes. Footage from within Jalisco
01:52shows plumes of smoke billowing into the air from city skylines and apparent bullet holes in storefronts.
01:59The violence eventually shut down the country's second largest city, Jalisco's state capital of
02:04Guadalajara, as cartel members engaged in running gun battles with authorities.
02:09The major Mexican resort town of Puerto Vallarta in Jalisco was under siege on February 22nd,
02:15with tourists being warned to stay indoors as narco gangs went on a rampage.
02:21Witnesses told Fox News they were forced to evacuate their rooms with limited hotel food
02:25and even venture outside in search of meals while waiting for Mexican authorities to regain control of
02:30the city. As panic spread throughout the region, reports initially surfaced of gunfire at Guadalajara
02:36International Airport on February 22nd, with one video posted online showing what appeared to be
02:42panicked passengers running for their lives. In a statement later in the day, the Pacific airport
02:48group said the Mexican National Guard had been dispatched to the bustling airport, but maintained
02:53that no incidents had been reported inside the facilities and that it was operating as usual.
02:59The violence has paralyzed a hugely populated swath of Mexico, with major U.S. airlines cancelling
03:05travel in and out of Puerto Vallarta on February 23rd. Puerto Vallarta is the country's fourth largest
03:11tourism destination, while Guadalajara's airport is the country's third busiest, with 18.7 million
03:18travelers every year. Four professional soccer matches between local clubs in Mexico were also
03:24postponed amid the violence near Guadalajara, one of the country's host cities for the 2026 World Cup.
03:31According to one expert, the killing of El Mencho could trigger a total war against the Mexican state.
03:37Security expert David Saucedo warned CNN Español.
03:43This didn't seem to be just an operation to capture El Mencho, but to exterminate him,
03:48to use lethal force to bring him down, Saucedo told CNN.
03:52In the criminal underworld, such actions are not simply overlooked. The reaction is what we're seeing now,
03:58narco-terrorism, blockades, and fires in grocery stores across Mexico, he added.
04:04On Monday, February 23rd, Mexican President Claudia Scheinbaum, along with authorities,
04:10reported that 2,500 troops had been deployed to Jalisco and neighboring states amid the chaos in the
04:15country that followed El Mencho's death, claiming that, quote,
04:18normality was reinstalled after military personnel were deployed. They also reported that 30 cartel
04:25operatives were killed in the violence, along with one female bystander, while 70 people were arrested
04:30in seven states across the country. Oseguera Cervantes, a sixth-grade dropout and a former cop,
04:37became one of Mexico's most feared cartel bosses, following the arrest and conviction of Joaquin
04:42El Chapo Guzman by U.S. authorities. The 59-year-old kingpin died in Tapalpa in Jalisco,
04:49following a raid by Mexican forces. The notorious drug kingpin was seriously injured in a firefight
04:54between military commandos and his bodyguards, and died shortly after from injuries en route to Mexico
05:01City. According to the White House, the U.S. provided intelligence support for the operation,
05:06which Scheinbaum confirmed. However, she noted there was no U.S. participation.
05:11El Mencho had been indicted several times in Washington, D.C. since 2017, most recently in
05:17April 2022, when he was charged with conspiracy and distribution of controlled substances for
05:23illegal importation into the U.S.
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