For the second time in three months the US military has launched a rescue operation to retrieve US citizens trapped on foreign soil. First it was Venezuela; now it’s Mexico.
In the aftermath of the death of cartel kingpin Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, commonly known as El Mencho, anarchy engulfed parts of Mexico. El Mencho’s enforcers responded to his capture and subsequent death by declaring war on Mexico’s federal law enforcement. Mexican Special Forces (aided by the CIA and Delta Force, but more on that in a future article) eliminated El Mencho as part of our southern neighbor’s promise to reduce the flow of narcotics into the United States. His death, though, caused unforeseen consequences.
A power vacuum led to infighting among splinter cells—widespread shootouts, arson, and blockades turned idyllic tourist traps into raging infernos, trapping American citizens—tourists, retirees, and business travelers—in hotels, condos, and emergency evacuation centers.
On Sunday afternoon, the US State Department issued an urgent emergency proclamation: “All U.S. citizens in the greater Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta areas are directed to shelter in place immediately. Commercial evacuation is impossible due to violence and infrastructure collapse. Military-assisted extraction is underway.” The directive came after frantic calls from trapped nationals flooded emergency lines, with videos showing burning resorts and gunfire-riddled streets.
Simultaneously, tarmacs at Fort Bliss’ Biggs Army Airfield bustled with activity. MH-60 Blackhawk and AH-64 gunship helicopters prepared to exfiltrate Americans who had no other avenue of escape. At 0200 hours, the first wave reached the coastal city of Puerto Vallarta, a resort community-turned-hellscape. Buildings were ablaze, burning husks of vehicles littered the Malecón, and armed gangsters skirmished in the streets, unleashing a hailstorm of bullets at the federal police. The cartelists had squad-automatic-weapons and RPGs; the outgunned federal police had only shotguns, pistols, and a few rifles, and spent more time running for cover than engaging the enemy.
As the battle raged higher, one Black Hawk team fast-roped onto the rooftop of the Marriott, where 12 elderly Americans had barricaded themselves against cartel murders. US Army Rangers set up a safe zone, while medics triaged burn and smoke-inhalation victims. An Apache gunship shredded a cartel truck sporting a .50-cal machine gun.
An hour later, in Guadalajara, US forces rescued Americans who had sought refuge at a church. A ground team breached the perimeter under covering fire and guided civilians to waiting choppers. One dramatic rescue saw a Black Hawk hoist a mother and her two children from a balcony engulfed in flames.
“It’s a war zone out there,” a State Department source told Real Raw News, “but we’re committed to ensuring the safety of our people getting out of people caught in the madness. We have some help from the Mexican government, but they’re stretched thin. We won’t abandon our people.”