8 killed in shootout between Mexican soldiers, suspected cartel gunmen near U.S. border
Seven suspected cartel gunmen and one soldier were killed in a shootout Wednesday between the army and gang members in the northern Mexico border city of Nuevo Laredo, authorities said.
The shootings were the second time in as many weeks that large-scale violence has hit Nuevo Laredo, across the border from Laredo, Texas.
Police in the border state of Tamaulipas said military personnel were attacked and one soldier was killed and seven were wounded. Seven presumed attackers also died, police said.
The shootout took place on a roadway about 3 miles from the U.S. border. State police said there had been "risk situations" - usually a reference to gunfire - at several points in the city, but that the outbreaks had been controlled.
In late November, gunfire in Nuevo Laredo forced the cancellation of school classes and an advisory from the U.S. Consulate to shelter in place.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said the shootings in November came in response to the arrest of a cartel leader, but did not elaborate. The city has long been dominated by the Northeast cartel, an offshoot of the old Zetas gang.
The U.S. Consulate in Nuevo Laredo cancelled visa appointments Wednesday.
Earlier this year, the U.S. authorized the departure of families and some personnel at the consulate after drug cartel gunmen fired at the consulate building.
That gunfire came in retaliation for the arrest of drug gang leader Juan Gerardo Treviño, also known as "El Huevo." U.S. authorities describe him as a founder and leader of the Northeast cartel.
The Justice Department said an indictment unsealed against Treviño charges him with 11 counts of drug trafficking conspiracy and other charges that could send him to prison for life. The department called Treviño the "drug trafficker, enforcer, weapons procurer, and plaza leader" of the cartel.