14 Mexican police officers killed in ambush

[TexasTowelie]

MEXICO CITY - At least 14 police officers were killed in an ambush in the western Mexican state of Michoacan on Monday, a reflection of the intensifying violence between security forces and criminal groups in one of the country’s most volatile regions.

The state police squadron had been ordered by a court to enter the municipality of Aguililla, where drug cartels have long held significant influence, to retrieve a woman and her daughter. Four patrol cars were ambushed on a main road just outside the city.

“Several armed civilians fired on them,” the state security department said. Two of the patrol cars were set on fire.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador ran for office on promises to address the root causes of organized crime, a strategy he has called “abrazos, no balazos” - hugs, not bullets. Still, he pushed for the creation of a national guard, aimed at strengthening security in cities with weak local police.

Read more: https://www.gadsdentimes.com/zz/news/20191014/14-mexican-police-officers-killed-in-ambush

[Eugene]

1. Mexican president defends security plan after police massacre

Source: Reuters

WORLD NEWS OCTOBER 15, 2019 / 11:38 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

Mexican president defends security plan after police massacre

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador defended his security strategy on Tuesday and blamed past administrations for chronic violence, a day after at least 13 police were killed in an ambush by suspected cartel gunmen.

Lopez Obrador told a news conference the ambush in the western state of Michoacan was “very regrettable” but reiterated that his commitment to increased spending on security and tackling the root causes of violence would eventually pay dividends.

“I’m optimistic we’ll secure peace ... we’re completely dedicated to this issue, but (past governments) allowed it to grow. There’s a new security model now,” Lopez Obrador said, describing the site of the ambush as a “violent area.”

The leftist leader has sharply criticized past efforts that pursued an army-led approach to battling crime.

But after a record number of homicides in Mexico in 2018, they are on track to go even higher this year, putting Lopez Obrador under increasing pressure to stop massacres like Monday’s ambush in the violent western state of Michoacan.

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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mexico-violence/mexican-president-defends-security-plan-after-police-massacre-idUSKBN1WU28V