The Fifteenth Military Zone confirmed that there was an attack against the military personnel and of the National Guardperpetrated last January 20, in the municipality of Santa María del Oro, Jaliscoon the border with Michoacán, and whose images were leaked on social networks by personnel who were present at the time of the attack.
The Fifteenth Military Zone confirmed that the attack was in against troop personnel from the Twenty-First Military Zone based in Morelia, Michoacán, Although the attack occurred in a gap in the town of Cipoco, a small community in the municipality of Santa María del Oro Jalisco, with 93 inhabitants according to INEGI 2020, located 150 kilometers from Guadalajara and 28 kilometers from los Reyes, Michoacán.
In a video of just 8 seconds, recorded from a National Guard unit, you can see the chest in white and with the shield of this corporation, you can see that a few meters ahead some federal elements are walking and another unit is there when a land mine explodes.
After the explosion, a cloud of dirt rises and it is seen that an officer was thrown out while another uniformed officer walked away.
Military sources confirmed that the attack left one member of the federal forces dead and two more seriously injured; The latter were transferred in serious condition to a hospital in Los Reyes, Michoacán, as it is the closest city.
Also in the convoy was a Jalisco State Police patrol, which was a few meters behind the point of the explosion. The shock wave caused one of the Jalisco state elements to burst his ear, so he was taken to a hospital in Guadalajara to receive medical attention. Jalisco authorities also remained silent regarding this fact.
Violence prevails in the area
But this was not the only violent event recorded last January in this border area between both entities.
During that week, several clashes between criminal groups were recorded.
As a result, at least 150 families from Cipoco and other nearby communities belonging to the same municipality, who have experienced the ravages of violence and were displaced by criminal groups that dispute control of the borders of Jalisco and Michoacán.
On January 24, Father José Luis Segura Barragán, who resides in La Loma, Jalisco and whose parish belongs to the Diocese of Apatzingán, pointed out through a video published on his social networks that the clashes between rival criminal groups have displaced to that number of families, which would be less than half a thousand people.
“On January 12 they expelled the people from Zipoco, El Carrizo, Panales, Petacala and perhaps Los Plátanos. Specifically they said that there were 150 families, about 500 people, but from other statistical reports perhaps there were less than 500 people. The The families do, because in those hills, the pandemic and violence decimated the communities and the young people left, so the elderly stayed to take care of the houses for the most part.”
The priest also shared in a broadcast on the YouTube platform that some huge planes arrived in Santa María del Oro. He also denounced that criminal groups planted land mines to instill terror among the inhabitants of these towns.
Regarding all these violent events, on the same day, January 24, Governor Enrique Alfaro Ramírez assured that a security meeting was held in which it was agreed to strengthen security in the area.
“In the framework of the security meeting, we followed up on what has been happening in recent days on the border between Michoacán and Jalisco, particularly in the area of Santa María del Oro and in the town of Zipoco, where there is a dispute between organized crime groups”.
Other attacks
This is not the first time that a landmine attack against armed forces personnel.
According to journalistic reports, on February 1, 2022, a convoy of the Mexican Army was attacked with these devices near Apatzingán, Michoacán, leaving four soldiers injured.
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On January 30, 2022, in another attack carried out in the municipality of Tepalcatepec, Michoacán, on the border with Jalisco, eight officers were injured.
Note published in The Western