Clashes between police and suspected cartel gunmen in a northern Mexican town killed 21 people this weekend, authorities said, adding fuel to bilateral tensions sparked by U.S. President Donald Trump’s vow to designate the drug gangs as terrorists, Trend reports citing Reuters.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who is pushing a less confrontational approach to subduing the cartels, repeated on Sunday that he would not accept any intervention from abroad, while doubling down on his strategy of containment.
But the killings clouded celebrations marking his first year in office, which were buffeted by a march in Mexico City by thousands of people protesting the violence.
The government of the northern state of Coahuila said local security forces killed seven gunmen early on Sunday, adding to 10 others who were shot dead during exchanges in and around the small town of Villa Union not far from the Texas border.
Four police were also killed and six wounded in the shootouts, which stunned residents of the town around midday on Saturday, sparking alarm on social media and fresh criticism of the government’s approach to handling the powerful gangs.