Extreme narco violence marks Peña Nieto's first week

55 executed nationwide in last seven days; bodies of 13 organized crime victims found in Tamaulipas

"The fight against drug trafficking in Mexico has to imply the reduction of violence" - General Óscar Naranjo, PRI government drug war czar, July 7, 2012

Guadalajara -
Mexico was wracked by brutal narco violence this week, the first of 312 which await newly installed PRI president Enrique Peña Nieto in his six year term which began last Saturday. He was sworn in on Dec. 1.

At least 55 persons have been executed in drug trafficking and organized crime violence since last weekend, according to news service reports. The events occurred in 13 Mexican states: Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, Coahuila, Guerrero (Acapulco), Sinaloa, Sonora, Morelos, Jalisco (Guadalajara), San Luis Potosí, Chihuahua, Michoacán, Oaxaca and Estado de México.

In Ciudad Mante, a city in the extreme south of the border state of Tamaulipas, the bodies of 13 victims were found abandoned yesterday in two vehicles, five of them with their throats slashed. A press account is here. The city experienced a similar event in June (14 corpses left at Tamaulipas city hall). Tamaulipas and its capital city of Ciudad Victoria have been the subject of several U.S. State Department advisories this year, as has the border town of Matamoros (Mar. 31 - U.S. Consulate in Matamoros, Tamaulipas issues Emergency Warning for Americans).

Dec. 19 - Enrique's challenging homework
Dec. 19 - In the land of the Sierra Tarahumara, narco traffickers wage open war against the poorest
Dec. 8 - Peña Nieto proceeds with plans for national gendarmerie, asks for $116 million USD funding
Dec. 2 - Narcos send Enrique Peña Nieto a message: nothing has changed
Nov. 30 - Nearly 59,000 dead in Mexico's six year drug war
Nov. 21 - Mexican survey gives poor marks to Calderón, reveals little confidence in Peña Nieto
Nov. 20 - U.S. State Dept. renews general travel alert for Mexico
Oct. 23 - Mexican super gangs will present big challenge for Enrique Peña Nieto
Oct. 11 - Jalisco homicides remain unabated in September
Apr. 21 - Fifteen die in attack on Chihuahua bar
Mar. 19 - Acapulco: 12 dead police, 10 severed heads

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