Guerrero Village Evacuated Amid Cartel Drone Attacks as World Cup Matches Proceed in Major Cities

MEXICO CITY — Dawn broke over central Mexico on Wednesday when cartel drones began launching bomb attacks on the mountainous region of Guerrero.

The rural Guajes de Ayala community had alerted state authorities to the escalating threats from La Nueva Familia Michoacana, but their warnings were ignored as World Cup festivities dominated Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey.

Marilu Solorio, 24, took refuge in a nearby abandoned clinic with 70 others — women, children, and the elderly — enduring continuous drone explosions and gunfire exchanges between the cartel and the community’s vigilante force.

“While some are celebrating goals, others are being massacred by drones carrying bombs,” Solorio said from her shelter. “Instead of protecting people where they’re playing the World Cup, (Mexico’s government) should be protecting people like us, who have never done anything wrong.”

Mexican authorities publicly denied the attacks in Guerrero despite locals livestreaming footage of gunfire and smoke billowing from vigilante-held mountain lookouts.

The assaults occurred amid President Claudia Sheinbaum’s efforts to address Mexico’s endemic criminal violence. While homicides have declined under her administration, pressure intensified after the World Cup following a surge in violence in Guadalajara. Compounding these challenges are threats from U.S. President Donald Trump to deploy military action against cartels and internal political instability.

Authorities deployed 100,000 security personnel to safeguard World Cup host cities, leaving other regions vulnerable. The tournament concluded without major security incidents in Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara.

Yet violence persisted nationwide. In Sinaloa, weekend clashes between criminal groups killed a naval officer and 10 suspected gang members. Southern Veracruz saw the discovery of a kidnapped journalist’s body, identified by local authorities as falling victim to criminal groups. In Chiapas, eight bodies were found with cartel warnings.

Guajes de Ayala residents had previously documented cartel drone activity and the approach of armed fighters through social media, fearing an imminent attack that ultimately materialized. The government has yet to respond to the AP’s inquiry, though Mexico’s Security Cabinet claimed the reported violence was “ruled out” by authorities and pledged increased security deployment.

La Nueva Familia Michoacana, designated a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. in 2023, has steadily expanded its control in Guerrero. Hundreds of locals have fled, while some men formed vigilante groups armed with U.S.-smuggled military-grade weapons, grenades, and drones to resist cartel incursions.

For Guerrero’s residents, the inevitability of further attacks looms large given the region’s history of cartel warfare.

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