Dozens of troops left dead in bust that killed cartel leader

Twenty-five members of the Mexican National Guard have been left dead in six separate attacks after special forces killed the notorious leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the country's security secretary says, as much of Mexico fears more violence.

Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," was the boss of one of the fastest-growing criminal networks in Mexico, known for trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine to the US and staging brazen attacks against government officials who challenged the cartel.

He was killed after a shootout in his home state of Jalisco as the Mexican military attempted to capture him. Cartel members responded with widespread violence, blocking roads and setting fire to vehicles.

Mexican Defence Secretary Ricardo Trevilla said Monday that authorities had followed one of Oseguera Cervantes' romantic partners to his hideout in Tapalpa, Jalisco.

Army and National Guard special forces moved in on Sunday morning and immediately came under heavy fire. Eight gunmen were killed there.

Oseguera Cervantes and two bodyguards fled into a wooded area where they were seriously wounded in a firefight, Trevilla said. They were flown out along with a wounded soldier, but El Mencho and his bodyguards died en route to Mexico City, he said.

In a different location in Jalisco, soldiers also killed another high-ranking cartel member who Trevilla said was coordinating violence and offering more than $US1000 ($1420) for every soldier killed.

Also killed on Sunday were a prison guard, an agent from the state prosecutor's office and a woman who was not identified by authorities.

Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch said 30 criminal suspects were killed in Jalisco and four others were killed in the neighbouring state of Michoacan.

Several Mexican states cancelled school on Monday, and local and foreign governments including Australia warned their citizens to stay inside after widespread violence erupted.

President Claudia Sheinbaum urged calm, and authorities said all of the more than 250 cartel roadblocks across 20 states had been cleared by Monday.

The White House confirmed that the US provided intelligence support to the operation to capture the cartel leader and applauded Mexico's army for taking down a man who was one of the most wanted criminals in both countries.

Mexico hoped the death of the world's biggest fentanyl traffickers would ease Trump administration pressure to do more than against the cartels, but many people were on edge as they waited to see the powerful cartel's reaction.

Many fear more than violence

The US Embassy said on X that its personnel in eight cities and in Michoacan would shelter in place and work remotely on Monday, and it warned US citizens in many parts of Mexico to do the same.

Cars began circulating in Guadalajara before sunrise Monday with the start of the workweek, a notable change from Sunday, when Jalisco's state capital and Mexico's second-largest city was almost completely shut down as fearful residents stayed home.

More than 1000 people were stuck overnight in Guadalajara's zoo, where they slept in buses. On Monday morning, mothers wrapped in blankets carried their toddlers out of the buses for a much-needed bathroom break as police trucks guarded the area.

Luis Soto Rendón, the zoo's director, said many had been trapped there since 9am on Sunday (2am Monday AEDT), when violence broke out in Jalisco and the surrounding states. Families were left stranded after concluding they could not return home in nearby states like Zacatecas and Michoacan.

"We decided to let people stay inside the zoo for their safety," Soto said.

"There are small children and senior citizens."

José Luis Ramírez, a 54-year-old therapist, was in a long line of people waiting outside a pharmacy, one of the few businesses that were open on Monday in Guadalajara. Families were buying food, medicine, water, diapers and baby formula from pharmacists through a chained door.

It was Ramírez's first time leaving the house since violence erupted over the weekend, but he struck a hopeful tone saying that despite the bloodshed, civilians needed to move forward.

"We have to not think scared, but be cool-headed, like they say, and take things as they come," he said.

Traffic was light in the city, and outwardly it appeared that those who could afford to stay home were doing so, while those who had to work were carefully making their way across the city.

Irma Hernández, a 43-year-old hotel security guard in Guadalajara, arrived at work early on Monday.

She normally takes public transportation to work, but buses were not running, and she had no way to cross the city. Her bosses organised a private car to pick her up. Her family, she said, was staying at home, too scared to leave.

"I am worried because I don't know how to get home if something happens," she said.

Videos circulating on social media on Sunday showed tourists in Puerto Vallarta walking on the beach with smoke rising in the distance.

Blow against cartel could be diplomatic coup

David Mora, Mexico analyst for the International Crisis Group, said the outburst of violence marks a point of inflection in Sheinbaum's push to crack down on cartels and relieve US pressures.

US President Donald Trump has demanded Mexico do more than to fight the smuggling of fentanyl, threatening to impose more tariffs or take unilateral military action if the country does not show results.

There were early signs that Mexico's efforts were well received by the US.

US Ambassador Ron Johnson recognised the success of the Mexican armed forces and their sacrifice in a statement late Sunday. Under the leadership of Trump and Sheinbaum, he said, "bilateral cooperation has reached unprecedented levels".

But it may also pave the way for more violence as rival criminal groups take advantage of the blow dealt to the CJNG, Mora said.

"This might be a moment in which those other groups see that the cartel is weakened and want to seize the opportunity for them to expand control and to gain control over Cartel Jalisco in those states," he said.

"Ever since President Sheinbaum has been in power, the army has been way more confrontational, combative against criminal groups in Mexico," Mora said.

"This is signalling to the US that if we keep cooperating, sharing intelligence, Mexico can do it. We don't need US troops on Mexican soil."

'El Mencho' was a major target

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said via X that the US government provided intelligence support for the operation.

"'El Mencho' was a top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland," she wrote. She commended Mexico's military for its work.

The US State Department had offered a reward of up to $US15 million for information leading to the arrest of El Mencho. The Jalisco New Generation Cartel is one of the most powerful criminal organisations in Mexico and began operating around 2009.

In February 2025, the Trump administration designated the cartel as a foreign terrorist organisation.

Sheinbaum has criticised the "kingpin" strategy of previous administrations that took out cartel leaders, only to trigger explosions of violence as cartels fractured.

The Jalisco cartel has been one of the most aggressive cartels in its attacks on the military — including on helicopters — and is a pioneer in launching explosives from drones and installing mines. In 2020, it carried out a spectacular assassination attempt with grenades and high-powered rifles in the heart of Mexico City against the then-head of the capital's police force and now federal security secretary.

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