CIA denies reports of secret cartel war in Mexico
The CIA vehemently denied a CNN report claiming it had substantially expanded covert operations in Mexico to fight drug cartels, including alleged involvement in assassinations. CIA spokeswoman Liz lyons called the report false and “salacious,” saying it endangers American lives.Mexico also pushed back: Security secretary Omar Garcia Harfuch said Mexico rejects any suggestion of lethal foreign covert or unilateral operations on its territory, while stating cooperation with the U.S. is limited to information sharing and coordination under principles of sovereignty and mutual trust.
The article notes that allegations of deeper U.S.role in Mexico’s cartel war have circulated since early in Trump’s term, including reporting that CIA intelligence supported a Mexican special forces operation that killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio “El Mencho” oseguera Cervantes. CNN’s newer account, the piece says, goes further by describing CIA elite Ground Branch involvement ranging from intelligence sharing to direct participation in assassinations, though primarily targeting mid-level cartel figures.
The Central Intelligence Agency vehemently denied reports of its participation in deadly operations against drug cartels in Mexico.
On Tuesday, CNN published a report alleging that the CIA had vastly expanded its operations in Mexico against drug cartels, including getting directly involved in assassinations of cartel figures. The most notable was its alleged facilitation of a car bombing on a busy Mexican highway that killed Francisco “El Payin” Beltran on March 28. CIA spokeswoman Liz Lyons denied the report in strong terms, accusing the outlet of endangering American lives.
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“This is false and salacious reporting that serves as nothing more than a PR campaign for the cartels and puts American lives at risk,” she said in a post on X.
Mexico’s Secretary of Security Omar Garcia Harfuch backed the CIA’s denial, issuing a statement of his own holding that Mexico City “categorically rejects any version that seeks to normalise, justify, or suggest the existence of lethal, covert, or unilateral operations by foreign agencies on national territory.”
“Cooperation with the United States exists, is important, and has yielded relevant results for both countries; however, it is carried out under clear principles: respect for sovereignty, shared responsibility, mutual trust, and cooperation without subordination,” he said.
Any international involvement in Mexico is limited to “information exchange, institutional coordination, and formal mechanisms” through the government.
Expanded U.S. involvement in Mexico’s war against its cartels has been alleged since shortly after Trump entered office. It was widely reported that the CIA was instrumental in providing intelligence support to a Mexican special forces raid that killed Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the founder of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
CNN’s Tuesday report went well beyond what was previously being claimed. The deadly campaign against Mexico’s cartels has been spearheaded by the CIA’s elite Ground Branch, and has varied from intelligence sharing to direct participation in assassinations. The deadly operations have mostly been limited to mid-level cartel members so far.
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“The lethality of their operations has been seriously ramped up,” one of the people briefed on the operations told the outlet. “It’s a significant expansion of the kind of thing the CIA has been willing to do inside Mexico.”
The denial of participation of the CIA is also in the Mexican government’s interest, given the taboo of direct U.S. intervention.
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