'Start driving north': US tourists stranded in Mexico after slaying of top cartel boss 'El Mencho' sparks chaos



The U.S. State Department issued an advisory on Sunday instructing Americans in Jalisco State as well as in several other Mexican states to "shelter in place until further notice" following the elimination of Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera Cervantes, Mexico's most-wanted cartel boss.

With firefights breaking out across the country, radicals blocking key roads, and flights being canceled, many tourists really had no other option than to hunker down.

Mexican Army special forces, aided by the nation's air force and national guard, launched a military operation on Sunday aimed at capturing Oseguera Cervantes in Tapalpa, Jalisco.

'The United States will ensure narcoterrorists sending deadly drugs to our homeland are forced to face the wrath of justice.'

Under Oseguera Cervantes, 59, the Jalisco New Generation cartel became one of the most formidable criminal enterprises south of the border.

The State Department noted that the CJNG, which the Trump administration designated a terrorist organization last February, "has been assessed to have the highest cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine trafficking capacity in Mexico, and over the past few years, includes the trafficking of fentanyl into the United States."

In addition to trafficking deadly drugs, the savage and allegedly cannibalistic CJNG developed a reputation for murdering Mexican police and rival drug traffickers. The cartel was also allegedly involved in several assassination attempts against Mexican government officials.

Mexican National Guard outside Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime on Feb. 22. Photo by Daniel Cardenas/Anadolu/Getty Images

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt indicated that the U.S. provided intelligence support to ensure the success of Sunday's operation. Mexican officials confirmed that "complementary information was provided by U.S. authorities within the framework of bilateral coordination and cooperation with the United States."

"'El Mencho' was a was a top target for the Mexican and United States government [sic] as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland. Last year, President Trump rightfully designated the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization — because that’s exactly what it is," Leavitt said in a statement.

"President Trump has been very clear — the United States will ensure narcoterrorists sending deadly drugs to our homeland are forced to face the wrath of justice they have long deserved," added Leavitt.

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Photo by Yilmaz Yucel/Anadolu/Getty Images

Mexico's Secretariat of National Defense indicated that while attacked during the operation, Mexican military personnel "repelled the aggression," resulting in "four members of the 'CJNG' criminal group dying at the scene and three others being severely wounded, who lost their lives during their airlift to Mexico City."

Oseguera Cervantes was among those wounded in the operation who apparently perished in transit.

Although Mexican and U.S. officials reported that Oseguera Cervantes was eliminated during the operation, the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense said that a forensic evaluation will nevertheless be undertaken to confirm that the cartel terrorist is dead.

In the wake of the operation, in which officials seized numerous armored cartel vehicles and rocket launchers, Mexican Army and National Guard troops mobilized to Jalisco and neighboring states to maintain a modicum of order.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum — whose party has numerous members accused of being in bed with the cartels — underscored that "we must remain informed and calm."

'The good guys are stronger than the bad guys.'

Authorities in Jalisco, Michoacan, and Guanajuato indicated that seven Mexican National Guard troops were killed on Sunday along with seven others, reported the Associated Press.

Just before midnight on Sunday, the U.S. Dept. of State Bureau of Consular Affairs reiterated the need for American citizens to shelter in place, noting that "while no airports have been closed, roadblocks have impacted airline operations — most domestic & int’l flights are cancelled in Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta."

Consular Affairs noted further that all rideshares are suspended in Puerto Vallarta and toll roads in various parts of the country are temporarily suspended.

One tourist claiming to be in Puerto Vallarta captured footage of thick columns of smoke billowing up on either side of his resort. Footage reportedly taken by a Canadian tourist stranded in Puerto Vallarta shows smoke-filled streets caused in one instance by a flaming bus.

David Miranda, a Chicagoan whose vacation in Puerto Vallarta has evidently gone off the rails, told WSB-TV, "There's blockages, there's cars on fires, there's buses blocking the roads. So nobody can take an Uber, can take a taxi, can take a bus. Everything is blocked."

"We don't know how we're going to get food, because it's Airbnbs," said Miranda. "So everything is closed, the corner stores — everything is closed."

Lefty Karkazis of San Francisco also found himself trapped in Puerto Vallarta.

"We were supposed to fly out of here at 2 p.m. So local time, at approximately 10 o'clock, we came downstairs, trying to get a taxi to go to the airport," Karkazis told KPIX-TV. "And [the hotel staff] told us that nothing is moving, all the roads are blocked because there's apparently a cartel operation that is affecting all the flights in and out."

His United Airlines flight was reportedly canceled.

"The next flight out for San Francisco from United is on Thursday. So we might end up staying until Thursday. I don't know," continued Karkazis. "We're just going to go from there. And the worst-case scenario, like I told my wife, we're just going to rent a car and start driving north."

The Trump administration commended the Mexican military on a job well done.

Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said that the slaying of "one of the bloodiest and most ruthless drug kingpins" is a "great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America, and the world."

"The good guys are stronger than the bad guys," added Landau.

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Cape Town: My visit to one of the world's most dangerous cities



I recently ran a rather grueling race in Cape Town, a city ranked the world’s most stressful place to visit. By the end of my stay, I understood why.

Race morning brought cold Atlantic air. Table Mountain stood like a fortress. The scene was impossibly beautiful. Then the warnings began.

Julius Malema, the deranged leader of the openly Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters, has led crowds in chanting 'Kill the Boer,' the Afrikaans term for farmer.

“Stay where the crowds are after you finish,” an organizer told us.

A gray-haired runner, tying his never-before-worn Asics, gave me a knowing look, the kind that said "enjoy yourself, but stay alert." The gun fired. We surged forward. And Cape Town revealed itself in fragments.

The route hugged the ocean. Waves crashed against huge rocks. Sunlight rippled across the bay. Spectators shouted encouragement from spotless sidewalks. Cyclists zipped by in neon helmets. In Sea Point and Camps Bay, Cape Town looks effortlessly affluent: palm trees, clean promenades, and cafés filled with people sipping espressos. You could be forgiven for thinking the warnings were overstated. They weren’t. If anything, they were understated.

Razor wire on the Riviera

South Africa’s “Mother City” lives with staggering levels of violent crime. Armed robberies are frequent. Carjackings happen in broad daylight, averaging more than four an hour. Drivers slow at traffic lights but leave space ahead, ready to bolt. Doors lock automatically. Security companies advertise response times the way pizzerias advertise delivery. Sexual assault remains widespread, not just among women but also among children. In the Western Cape alone, nearly 2,000 sexual offenses against minors were recorded in a single quarter last year. The numbers are sobering; the anxiety is constant.

Security is everywhere. High walls ring homes like fortresses. Electric fencing hums overhead. Razor wire catches the light. The message needs no translation.

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NurPhoto/Getty Images

Gang warfare

A few hours before I arrived in the so-called cultural capital, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the deployment of soldiers to help fight criminal gangs, a clear sign that police can no longer contain the violence.

And violence is everywhere. Between April and September last year, an average of 63 people were murdered each day. In parts of the Western Cape, especially around Cape Town, gang warfare has become part of daily life. Children are caught in crossfire. Streets fall under the influence of savage syndicates. The gangs, armed with high-powered weapons and machetes, have grown bolder. Why wouldn’t they? Ramaphosa himself noted that soldiers aren’t trained for community policing. Their deployment now underscores the depth of the crisis.

In Gauteng province, illegal miners known as zama zamas run riot. Armed and operating in abandoned shafts, they have built criminal networks around illicit gold extraction. Residents describe intimidation, forced displacement, and operations typical of paramilitary units, not opportunistic gangs.

Existential threat

Ramaphosa has called violent crime “the most immediate threat to our democracy.” He’s right. It is. When criminal groups control territory, extract revenue, and outgun police, the problem is no longer confined to law enforcement. In truth, it becomes a contest over authority itself — an existential struggle South Africa knows all too well, a divided nation once again on edge.

These divisions didn’t appear overnight. Apartheid enforced separation with clinical precision. Its architects portrayed the system not as hatred but as “separate development,” claiming that divided populations couldn’t share power without conflict.

Whites were a small minority, and universal suffrage meant irreversible political defeat. Afrikaners carried the memory of previous conflicts, including the concentration camps in which thousands of their women and children died. They watched postcolonial upheaval unfold elsewhere in Africa and reasoned that without firm control, the country would descend into all-out anarchy.

Set aside outrage and judgment for a moment, and the logic reads as cautious, defensive realism. They believed strict separation would prevent barbarity, preserve a functioning economy, and protect a vulnerable minority from domination. In their minds, it was a matter of survival, not ideology. It’s easy to dismiss the apartheid movement as pure racism, a low-IQ explanation that fits neatly on a placard. But it overlooks the deeper dread that shaped it.

Farmers under siege

History didn’t end with apartheid’s fall. The country remains marked by mistrust, hatred, and absolute terror. Last year, President Trump suggested that white farmers were facing vicious reprisals. Violence against farmers is real and terrifying for those who live beyond the reach of towns and patrols. Farm attacks — home invasions, assaults, and killings — occur with regularity. Many farmers live far from towns or patrols, isolated and vulnerable when attackers strike.

Julius Malema, the deranged leader of the openly Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters, has led crowds in chanting “Kill the Boer,” the Afrikaans term for farmer. Thousands raise their hands like guns as they echo the refrain. Supporters describe it as a chant from the struggle era. Others, a little more grounded in reality, hear something far more dangerous. They hear language that calls for genocide. After all, what is being proposed is the elimination of people defined by a particular skin color. When I asked a white taxi driver whether such fears were exaggerated, he answered without hesitation: “No.”

At the crossroads ... again

South Africa is a beautiful country, arguably one of the most beautiful places on earth. Yet it can feel deeply intimidating, largely because it is. A tension hangs in the air, present even in the quietest moments. In many communities, it’s considered reckless not to keep multiple loaded firearms at home, ready to be used at any moment, day or night. Safety is discussed in near wartime terms. Even a simple trip to the store can feel like a roll of the dice, especially for white families.

Does South Africa have the capacity to weather the mounting unrest? I hope so, but I wouldn’t bet on it. A nation intimately familiar with bloodshed once again stands at a crossroads.

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14-year-old named Pagan apparently linked to satanic group is charged with threatening church massacre, child pornography



The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office in Tampa, Florida, has arrested a 14-year-old on terrorism and child pornography charges.

Sheriff Chad Chronister told reporters on Wednesday that "threats of mass violence and the exploitation of children are some of the most heinous crimes we investigate — and this case was no different."

'Images too graphic and too disturbing to discuss because they would keep all of you up at night.'

After receiving a tip on Jan. 31 that Jose Pagan Jr. had access to firearms and was plotting a massacre at a church near his home in Wimauma, the HCSO searched the teen suspect's family home, where officers found weapons, ammunition, and electronic devices containing horrific child pornography.

The sheriff indicated that Pagan — who was spotted in a photo wearing a No Lives Matter T-shirt and is apparently linked to a neo-Nazi satanic group — discussed in an online chat room associated with violent extremists his alleged plan to shoot up a church.

While Sheriff Chronister initially referred to the group as Temple of Love, his office confirmed to Blaze News on Thursday that Pagan was involved with the group Tempel ov Blood.

According to the Mapping Militants Project, Tempel ov Blood describes itself as a "hybrid between a traditional satanic coven and a (religious) militant order." FBI informant Joshua Caleb Sutter — a convicted felon who publishes neo-Nazi propaganda — has long led the group out of South Carolina.

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Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun Staff

TOB is apparently an American affiliate of the Order of Nine Angles, a global satanic pedophile cult known for anti-Semitism, hatred for Christianity, identitarianism, and admiration of Adolf Hitler and other loathsome historic figures. Its members have in the past reportedly encouraged their minor victims to commit suicide.

A Wisconsin teen who pleaded guilty last month to murdering his parents as part of a broader plot to assassinate President Donald Trump apparently was an adherent to the global satanic group's teachings.

Sheriff Chronister noted that days prior to executing the search warrant, his office received information from the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force about a possible mass shooting plot as well as information from a child exploitation hotline about child pornography possibly being downloaded at the same residence.

During the search of Pagan's home, detectives "discovered 14 extremely graphic, disturbing images where individuals were inflicting violence toward infants and toddlers — images too graphic and too disturbing to discuss because they would keep all of you up at night," Chronister said.

While most of the firearms in the house were found locked in a safe, authorities indicated that one firearm was easily accessible and stored in the father's nightstand.

Pagan was charged with written or electronic threat to conduct a mass shooting or act of terrorism; in-state transmission of child pornography by electronic device; multiple counts of solicitation or possession of child pornography; and multiple counts of unlawful use of a two-way communication device.

Although it's unclear if Pagan will be charged as an adult, Chronister stressed that "the age of the individual involved does not lessen the seriousness of these crimes."

The sheriff noted further that after the 21-day juvenile hold of the suspect, "based on the seriousness of these crimes, I am extremely worried about this 14-year-old integrating right back into our community, where our loved ones live."

The presence of law enforcement has greatly increased at two churches in the area, Chronister said.

The teen, who may face additional charges, told authorities he was just trying to be edgy.

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ANOTHER Democrat calls shooting ICE agents 'justified' — and Vance doesn't hold back



Democrats have worked overtime to demonize and delegitimize the men and women of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — those whom Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz branded as "Trump's modern-day Gestapo," Sen. Tina Smith (Minn.) called a "clear and present threat," Rep. Eric Swalwell (Calif.) dubbed "terrorizing bandits," and Democrat anchor-baby Rep. Delia Ramirez (Ill.) called a "terror force."

In addition to Rep. Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, and other Democrats threatening lawfare against ICE officers, some radical officials have turned up the heat by suggesting that it may be reasonable to shoot masked federal immigration agents.

'He is openly calling for people to shoot federal law enforcement.'

Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) claimed this week that it would be "justified" to shoot those he characterized as "masked hoodlums."

"What is really the major problem in this country today is the fascism in our streets, the attacks on American citizens by masked hoodlums," said Nadler, going off-topic during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday. "If you were attacked by a masked person, you might think you were being kidnapped. You'd be justified in shooting the person to protect yourself."

"We see people being shot, for what? For driving a car?" he added, possibly referring to Renee Good, an anti-ICE radical who was fatally shot while driving her SUV into an ICE agent. "We see the ICE goons break into people's homes without a warrant."

Vice President JD Vance was among the many critics who blasted Nadler over his incendiary remarks, noting, "Jerry Nadler is one of the highest ranking Democrats in the House of Representatives and he is openly calling for people to shoot federal law enforcement."

"This is despicable behavior from an elected official and I'm sure the leftwing media will cover it extensively," added Vance.

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Photo by Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images

Stephen Coughlin, an American lawyer and former Joint Chiefs of Staff intelligence analyst, wrote that from a "Counter-State POV, could this be considered 'open communications', sanctioning targeted violence against federal officers when conducting their statutory mission? It should be taken as a given that when the far left (Marxist) designates a group as 'fascist,' it is the same as putting them on a target list."

Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton noted, "The Left is murderous."

According to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE agents faced 68 vehicular attacks, representing a 3,300% increase in such attacks against ICE law enforcement. During the same stretch, Customs and Border Patrol officers faced 114 vehicular attacks.

"Sanctuary politicians with their rhetoric comparing ICE to the Nazi Gestapo, slave patrols, and the secret police and encouraging illegal aliens to evade arrest have incited violence against law enforcement," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement on Tuesday.

"We have seen more than 180 vehicle attacks against law enforcement since President Trump took office," continued McLaughlin. "In addition to these vehicle attacks, our officers are also facing a more than 1,300% increase in assaults against them and an 8,000% increase in death threats as they risk their lives to arrest murderers, pedophiles, rapists, gang members, and terrorists."

In an attempt at damage control Tuesday evening, Nadler claimed that he was "not calling on citizens to shoot ICE" but rather "calling on ICE to stop shooting citizens."

'It's kind of a recipe for disaster.'

"ICE is a rogue agency hellbent on terrorizing our neighbors and instilling fear in immigrant communities," Nadler continued in his non-apology. "They should stop wearing masks, put on a uniform, and start wearing body cameras. Get a judicial warrant, too."

Nadler's rationalization of shooting ICE agents greatly resembles that provided by Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) in her interview last month with KPNX-TV's Brahm Resnik.

After alleging that ICE officers are engaged in "thuggish, brutish behavior" and claiming that "real cops don't wear masks," Mayes told Resnik with a smile both that Arizona is a "stand-your-ground state" and that "we also have a lot of guns in Arizona."

"You know, it's kind of a recipe for disaster, because you have these masked federal officers with very little identification, sometimes no identification, wearing plain clothes and masks, and we have a stand-your-ground law that says that if you reasonably believe that your life is in danger and you are in your house or your car or on your property that you can defend yourself with lethal force."

Despite the interviewer providing Mayes with ample opportunity to clarify her meaning, the Democrat proceeded to give what appeared to be a retroactive excuse for would-be killers, stating, "How do you know they're a peace officer?"

"If there's a situation where somebody pulls out their gun because they know Arizona is a stand-your-ground state, then it becomes 'did they reasonably know that they were a peace officer?'" said Arizona's top law enforcement officer.

When Resnik once more pressed her for clarification that she was not "telling folks you have license if you are threatened," Mayes said, "Well," and smirked.

"No," she continued, "but again, if you're being attacked by someone who is not identified as a peace officer, how do you know?"

Like Nadler, Mayes faced widespread criticism for her comments. Republican Arizona Rep. David Schweikert, for instance, characterized them as "freelancing a scenario where bullets start flying and then shrugging it off as 'just the law.'"

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Jasmine Crockett dared anyone to find examples of Democrats championing violence — and the GOP delivered



Days after Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk's assassination, Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) did her apparent best on "The Breakfast Club" radio show to downplay the link between Democrats' incendiary rhetoric and political violence.

Crockett said, "Me disagreeing with you, me calling you 'wannabe Hitler,' all those things are not necessarily saying, 'Go out and hurt somebody.'"

"I literally have never said anything to invoke violence," claimed Crockett. "I challenge somebody to go and find a clip of a Democrat invoking violence."

'Not only are we gonna punch back, but we about to beat you down.'

The Republican Party has finally obliged Crockett, providing her with a compilation of various instances where Democrats made remarks that could be construed as calls for or rationalizations of political violence.

The video, released in the wake of Crockett's announcement on Monday that she is running for a U.S. Senate seat, includes 20 provocative statements from Democrats including:

  • former Biden Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo's September 2024 remark to liberal talking head Mika Brzezinski, "Let's extinguish him for good," referring to President Donald Trump. Brzezinski pressed Raimondo for clarification, asking, "And 'extinguish,' you mean vote him out?" to which Raimondo said, "Yes, absolutely. Vote him out. Banish him from American politics."
  • California Rep. Maxine Waters' suggestion to a mob in June 2018, "Let's make sure we show up wherever we have to show up, and if you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out, and you create a crowd, and you push back on them, and you tell them they're not welcome anymore, anywhere."
  • House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' (N.Y.) suggestion to fellow travelers in January that when it comes to the Trump agenda, "We are going to fight it legislatively, we are going to fight it in the courts, and we're going to fight it in the streets."
  • California Rep. Eric Swalwell's suggestion to CNN in August that "when they go low, we are going to bury them below the Capitol."
  • U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed's assertion in August that when it comes to "Trump and his ghouls," "when they go low, we don't go high. We take them to the mud and choke them out."
  • The August 2020 suggestion by Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley, who is one of the 58 Democrats who voted against a resolution condemning Charlie Kirk's assassination, that "there needs to be unrest in the streets for as long as there’s unrest in our lives."
  • California Gov. Gavin Newsom's suggestion on a podcast in August that "we're fighting fire with fire, and we're going to punch these sons of bitches in the mouth." Newsom was referring to Republicans whom he suggested moments earlier were radicals working to rig the 2026 midterm elections.
  • California Rep. Derek Tran's suggestion in August, "It's time for us as a party to get together and fight back, punch back, and make sure that they stay down. And you know what? Kick them when they're down because they deserve it."

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Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

The Republican compilation also included some of Crockett's own best hits.

One of the excerpts in the compilation was taken from Crockett's March interview with KXAS-TV's Phil Prazan where she said that in order to win an election in Texas, "You punch. I think you punch. I think you're OK with — you OK with punching."

In the same interview, Crockett referenced former Rep. Colin Allred's electoral defeat last year by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and suggested the Democrat should have been more combative with his Republican opponent, saying, "I mean, like, this dude [Cruz] has to be knocked over the head, like, hard, right. Like, there is no niceties with him — like, at all. Like, you go clean off on him."

Crockett — who has rooted for foreign nations engaged in trade disputes with the U.S.; told radicals that Elon Musk must be "taken down" amid firebombs; characterized Republican voters as stupid; issued racist remarks; mocked the handicapped; and dubbed the commander in chief "an enemy to the United States" — had another instance of violent rhetoric featured in the GOP's compilation.

The second excerpt, taken from a press conference in August, shows Crockett say, "I am here to tell you: Not only are we gonna punch back, but we about to beat you down."

NOTUS reported this week that the National Republican Senatorial Committee "has actively worked behind the scenes to encourage Rep. Jasmine Crockett to jump into the Senate Democratic primary in Texas, believing she will be the easiest opponent to beat."

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