Mexico with US Intel Kills Drug Lord El Mencho, CJNG Fights Back

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Mexico launched a special operation with active US intel input against El Mencho early Monday morning

By TRH World Desk

New Delhi, February 23, 2026 — Mexico killed top drug lord Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes alias ‘El Mencho.’ He headed the CJNG. Mexico officially announced his death, while Ministry of Defence admitted US intelligence for the special military operation to take down Mencho.

Mencho was a longtime head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). US President Donald Trump had framed his pre-election electioneering around a resolve to crush “trafficking of drugs and illegal immigration.” CJNG per American security analysts has been top source of drugs and illegal immigrants in the US.

Mexico has plunged into a chaos after the killing of the drug lord. Videos showed CJNG armed men setting petrol pumps on fire, putting roadblocks, storming airports, and staging attacks on Mexican army. The US, Canada, and others have cancelled flight operations to key airports in Mexico which are affected due to the ongoing violence on the street.

El Mencho was killed early Monday morning in a military operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco, in Mexico. “For more than a decade, El Mencho built more than just a powerful cartel: he built a criminal survival system based on constant mobility, strategic shelters, and information networks that allowed him to evade authorities repeatedly,” stated Reforma in a report.

Mexico’s embassy in the US in a media statement said that “special forces of the Mexican Army planned and executed an operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco. Various aircraft from the Mexican Air Force and the Special Immediate Reaction Force of the Mexican National Guard participated in this operation.” “During this operation, Mexican military personnel were attacked, and in defence, they repelled the aggression. This resulted in four members of the CJNG criminal group dying at the scene,” added the media statement issued by the embassy in Washington.

CBS News reported that “Mexico launched the special operation with intelligence help from the US.” A section of security analysts in the US even claimed that Mexico was pushed to launch the operation amid looming fear that the US could soon execute a Venezuela-like limited military action against Mencho.

The Mexican embassy also stated that arms recovered after the special operation included “rocket launchers capable of shooting down aircraft and destroying armoured vehicles.”

“In addition to central military intelligence efforts, complementary information was provided by US authorities within the framework of bilateral coordination and cooperation with the United States,” added the Mexican embassy.

Tourists have been stranded at their hotels in Puerto Vallarta. The Delta force of the drug cartel is fighting a pitched battle with Mexican army. Reports said that the Delta force of the cartel is equipped with modern weapons, while the personnel are moving around in armoured vehicles.