Mexico govt says 29 killed in operation to arrest drug kingpin El Chapo's son

The Mexican government said on Friday that 29 people — 10 soldiers and 19 criminal suspects — were killed in the operation to arrest Ovidio Guzman, the son of jailed drug lord El Chapo,the former leader of the Sinaloa cartel. Speaking to reporters, Mexico's secretary of defence Luis Cresencio said, "Ten members of the military... unfortunately lost their lives in the line of duty."

Ovidio Guzman, 32, was caught on Thursday in the Culiacan city and flown to Mexico City on a military plane following six months of intelligence work to track him down, news agency AFP reported.

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Guzman had allegedly helped to run El Chapo's operations since he was extradited to the United States in 2017.

The U.S. had put out a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to Ovidio Guzman's capture and accused him of being a key player in the Sinaloa cartel. The U.S. has sought his extradition for years.

Guzman's arrest triggered widespread violence in Mexico. His arrest comes ahead of a visit to Mexico by United States President Joe Biden.

However, this is not the first time that El Chapo's son was arrested. In October 2019, a bungled arrest of Guzman by authorities embarrassed the Mexican government and threw light on the challenges in cracking down on cartels, Reuters reported.

At that time, hundreds of cartel members overwhelmed security forces in Culiacan, with scenes of ensuing urban warfare. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador personally ordered Guzman's release to protect the civilian population.

The government has been waging a war against drug cartels for more than 10 years now. The cartels lead supplies of methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and many other illicit drugs to the United States. However, the cartels have also established their operations in many European countries including Italy, Germany and France.

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Apart from Sinaloa, some of the biggest cartels in Mexico include the Los Zetas, the Juárez Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

CJNG, led by "El Mencho" is perhaps one of the most violent cartels in Mexico. In December last year, El Mencho's brother was arrested in Jalisco in a joint operation conducted by the army, the national guard and other authorities.

(With inputs from agencies)

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