A shootout in the border city of Nuevo Laredo on Wednesday left a Mexican soldier and seven suspected cartel members dead, authorities said.
Tamaulipas police said the military in the area were shot, with one dead and seven more wounded.
ARREST OF CARTEL LEADER IN MEXICO BORDER CITY, NUEVO LAREDO, CAUSES VIOLENCE AND FORCES SCHOOLS TO CANCEL CLASSES
Seven of the attackers were also killed in the shootout.
The exchange of fire took place just three miles south of the US border and is just the latest in a series of violent incidents in the area. Last month, the US Consulate issued shelter-in-place advisories for Americans due to the sustained level of danger.
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A Google Earth image shows the Laredo Port of Entry on the World Trade Bridge between South Texas and Mexico.
(Google Earth)
Officials posted the notice on November 28 stating that “the Consulate has received reports of multiple shootings throughout the city of Nuevo Laredo following an arrest operation.”
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said the previous shootings occurred in response to the arrest of a cartel leader. The city has long been dominated by the Northeast Cartel, an offshoot of the former Zetas gang.
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The AFI, the Mexican police equivalent of the FBI, on patrol in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, on August 1, 2005.
(Janet Schwartz/MCT/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Many cartels in Mexico react to the arrest of prominent members by creating chaos, either to prevent the arrest or transfer of suspects or to pressure authorities to release them. López Obrador said the suspect had already been taken to Mexico City.
