--- title: Mexico is Burning description: "After El Mencho’s death, Mexico erupts in cartel violence—roadblocks, airport chaos, burning cities. How one kingpin’s killing pushed the nation to the brink and what it means for the drug war. Stay ahead of global conflicts with WarFronts Weekly. Get sharp, no-nonsense military analysis straight to your inbox. Subscribe: https://fronts.co/warfronts-weekly Get full conflict briefings, and members-only analysis at fronts.co https://fronts.co Join the community and discuss current flashpoints in real time: https://www.reddit.com/r/frontsco Love the content? Explore Simon's other YouTube channels: Megaprojects: https://www.youtube.com/@megaprojects9649 SideProjects: https://www.youtube.com/@Sideprojects Into The Shadows: https://www.youtube.com/@IntotheShadows Today I Found Out: https://www.youtube.com/@TodayIFoundOut Brain Blaze: https://www.youtube.com/@brainblaze6526 Casual Criminalist: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCasualCriminalist Decoding the Unknown: https://www.youtube.com/@decodingtheunknown2373 Places: https://www.youtube.com/@Places302 Celestium: https://www.youtube.com/@Celestium1234 PoliticalFronts: http://www.youtube.com/@politicalfronts Simon on social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/SimonWhistler Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simonwhistler/ 00:00 Introduction 01:40 A Country On Its Knees 05:51 The Operation 10:58 What Next? Sources: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c795qgejzpxo https://www.dw.com/en/mexican-army-kills-drug-lord-oseguera-el-mencho/a-76080378 https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/mexico-el-mencho-killed-travel-chaos-02-23-26-intl-hnk https://www.filmogaz.com/163620 https://www.foxnews.com/video/6389739281112 https://abc7news.com/post/el-mencho-bay-area-residents-stuck-puerto-vallarta-mexico-amid-unrest-killing-powerful-drug-lord/18637358/ https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicagoan-describes-terrifying-encounter-with-cartel-gunmen-during-unrest-in-mexico/3898572/ https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/02/22/top-mexican-drug-cartel-leader-killed67507614.html https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/22/mexico-announces-killing-of-drug-cartel-kingpin-el-mencho https://english.elpais.com/international/2025-03-06/el-mencho-and-don-rodo-a-life-of-evading-justice-from-small-time-dealers-to-heads-of-the-most-powerful-cartel-in-mexico.html" url: https://fronts.co/videos/warfronts-ftwdxtnxipa.md canonical: https://fronts.co/videos/warfronts-ftwdxtnxipa/ datePublished: 2026-02-23T18:45:03.000Z dateModified: 2026-02-23T18:45:03.000Z author: - name: Fronts Staff url: https://fronts.co/authors/fronts-team/ publisher: Fronts type: NewsArticle language: en access: members isAccessibleForFree: false tokens: 609 --- After El Mencho’s death, Mexico erupts in cartel violence—roadblocks, airport chaos, burning cities. How one kingpin’s killing pushed the nation to the brink and what it means for the drug war. Stay ahead of global conflicts with WarFronts Weekly. Get sharp, no-nonsense military analysis straight to your inbox. Subscribe: https://fronts.co/warfronts-weekly Get full conflict briefings, and members-only analysis at fronts.co https://fronts.co Join the community and discuss current flashpoints in real time: https://www.reddit.com/r/frontsco Love the content? Explore Simon's other YouTube channels: Megaprojects: https://www.youtube.com/@megaprojects9649 SideProjects: https://www.youtube.com/@Sideprojects Into The Shadows: https://www.youtube.com/@IntotheShadows Today I Found Out: https://www.youtube.com/@TodayIFoundOut Brain Blaze: https://www.youtube.com/@brainblaze6526 Casual Criminalist: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCasualCriminalist Decoding the Unknown: https://www.youtube.com/@decodingtheunknown2373 Places: https://www.youtube.com/@Places302 Celestium: https://www.youtube.com/@Celestium1234 PoliticalFronts: http://www.youtube.com/@politicalfronts Simon on social: Twitter: https://twitter.com/SimonWhistler Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simonwhistler/ 00:00 Introduction 01:40 A Country On Its Knees 05:51 The Operation 10:58 What Next? Sources: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c795qgejzpxo https://www.dw.com/en/mexican-army-kills-drug-lord-oseguera-el-mencho/a-76080378 https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/mexico-el-mencho-killed-travel-chaos-02-23-26-intl-hnk https://www.filmogaz.com/163620 https://www.foxnews.com/video/6389739281112 https://abc7news.com/post/el-mencho-bay-area-residents-stuck-puerto-vallarta-mexico-amid-unrest-killing-powerful-drug-lord/18637358/ https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicagoan-describes-terrifying-encounter-with-cartel-gunmen-during-unrest-in-mexico/3898572/ https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/02/22/top-mexican-drug-cartel-leader-killed67507614.html https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/22/mexico-announces-killing-of-drug-cartel-kingpin-el-mencho https://english.elpais.com/international/2025-03-06/el-mencho-and-don-rodo-a-life-of-evading-justice-from-small-time-dealers-to-heads-of-the-most-powerful-cartel-in-mexico.html --- Full analysis is behind the paywall. Read the gated piece at https://fronts.co/videos/warfronts-ftwdxtnxipa/.