Mexico’s Cartels Are Using Military Weapons
Mexico’s Cartels Are Using Military Weapons
Recent attacks on villages in Mexico’s western state of Michoacán reveal the cartels’ growing paramilitary-style power, using drones, I.E.D.s and other weapons of war. Paulina Villegas examines the aftermath of these assaults.
Read the full article on NY Times World
Truth Analysis
Analysis Summary:
The article's claim about cartels using military-grade weapons is supported by multiple sources, but the extent and implications require careful consideration. There is a moderate bias due to the selection of dramatic events and potentially overstating the cartels' power relative to the Mexican state.
Detailed Analysis:
- Claim: Cartels are using military weapons, including drones and I.E.D.s.
- Verification Source #1: Mexico demands investigation into U.S. military-grade weapons being used by drug cartels.
- Verification Source #2: Cartels are increasing their firepower, including guided missile launchers.
- Verification Source #4: Cartels in Mexico are armed with explosives and heavy machine guns.
- Assessment: Supported. Multiple sources confirm that cartels are using military-grade weapons and explosives.
- Claim: Recent attacks on villages in Michoacán reveal the cartels’ growing paramilitary-style power.
- Verification Source #3: Mexican authorities have been waging a deadly battle against drug cartels for nearly two decades, but with limited success.
- Assessment: Partially supported. The claim of attacks is plausible, and the ongoing conflict suggests a degree of power, but the 'growing paramilitary-style power' aspect is less directly supported and could be an interpretation. Source 3 indicates the conflict has been ongoing for decades with limited success, implying sustained power rather than necessarily 'growing' power.
- Claim: The weapons are U.S. military-grade.
- Verification Source #1: Mexico demands investigation into U.S. military-grade weapons being used by drug cartels.
- Verification Source #5: A factory city in Wisconsin fed weapons to a Mexican cartel.
- Assessment: Supported. Sources 1 and 5 indicate that U.S. military-grade weapons are being used by Mexican cartels.
Supporting Evidence/Contradictions:
- Source 1: Mexico demands investigation into U.S. military-grade weapons being used by drug cartels.
- Source 2: Cartel arms race has amped up in recent years. El Flaco said cartels began buying guided missile launchers in part because rival criminal gangs
- Source 5: After Mexico launched its drug war in 2006, homicides tripled. Nearly 400,000 Mexicans have been killed, increasingly with firearms.