Mexican President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador blamed the U.S. for a recent surge in violence in Sinaloa, linking it to the detention in the U.S. of two drug lords: Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Loera.
U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar took issue with Lopez Obrador's characterization in a press conference. “That is not the United States’ fault," he said. "The reality is that there is a problem of insecurity and violence.”
Salazar added the problem can only be solved with deep and strong collaborations between the two countries.
Lopez Obrador said Mexico has not received further information of the alleged agreements between U.S. authorities and criminal groups.
The ongoing war between Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and Los Chapitos, sons of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, has left a trail of violence and terror in Sinaloa since Sept. 9 — the most significant internal fracture within the Sinaloa Cartel in over a decade.
Cecilia Farfan, a researcher at the Institute of Global Conflict and Cooperation at UC San Diego, said the July arrests have created a power vacuum and shifting criminal dynamics. “It's less clear what is the expected outcome and more importantly, when it will end," she added.
The state of Sinaloa and its capital city Culiacán have been transformed into a war zone, with nearly 60 homicides, dozens of disappearances, injuries, and arrests, according to state and federal authorities.
By the end of August, a series of attacks between armed civilians and military forces in the key territory of Jesús María, controlled by Los Chapitos, indicated the growing tension.
The incident stirred fears of a repeat of the "Culiacanazo" — the violent episodes following the first capture of Ovidio Guzmán, El Chapo's youngest son, in October 2019, before being released hours later.
The war fully erupted when a deadly shootout between civilians and soldiers in Culiacán resulted in the closures of schools in the area. Hours later, authorities reported the death of a sergeant, marking the official start of what has since become a deadly and widespread conflict.
Farfan, who studies cartel violence in Mexico, explained that the common narrative that violence is part of life in certain parts of Mexico has been normalized but the truth is people just navigate it and develop coping mechanisms.
People are fleeing because they feel unsafe. Hundreds have left small towns, while many more have self-imposed lockdowns.
“They just don't trust the authorities to be doing their job,” Farfan explained.
The government of Sinaloa, led by Gov. Rubén Rocha, has been slow to respond, further intensifying the fear and confusion among civilians. This past weekend, just when civilians thought they could leave their houses, a two-hour shooting took place in the streets with helicopters overflying the area.
Farfan said López Obrador has also not been able to address the residents' concerns.
“He likes the idea of him taking a photo, with El Chapo’s mom in Badiguarato, Sinaloa, which in the narrative of drug trafficking in Mexico holds a very particular place as a cradle of where everything started," Farfan said. "But he doesn’t want to meet with thousands of moms searching for their missing ones.”
Despite efforts by the military to contain the violence, with 700 soldiers deployed in the state, the conflict continues to spiral.
Highways like the Carretera México 15 and other key routes have become hotspots for violent attacks.
In the past two weeks, there have been multiple reports of bodies found mutilated, decapitated, and shot. Meanwhile, state and local authorities struggle to maintain control, further fueling the fear and uncertainty among Sinaloa’s residents.
