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Security Forces Kill Five During Gunfight in Northern Mexico Town

Reuters

   MEXICO CITY - Mexican security forceskilled at least five suspected
   cartel gunmen in a shootout Saturday in a town near the U.S. border,
   authorities from thenorthern state of Coahuila said, during a moment of
   heightenedbilateral tension over violent gangs.

   The Coahuila attorney general's office said in a statementthat state
   security officials shot the five suspects duringclashes in the small
   town of Villa Union, about 40 miles (65 km)southwest of the border city
   of Piedras Negras.

   Around midday, heavy gunfire began ringing out, and a convoyof armed
   pickup trucks could be seen moving around Villa Union,according to
   video clips posted by social media users. Othersshowed plumes of smoke
   rising from the town.

   They also posted photos of burned-out vehicles and the VillaUnion
   mayor's office riddled with bullet holes. Reuters couldnot vouch for
   the authenticity of the video or photos.

   Lopez Obrador: No help needed

   The outbreak of violence occurred during a testing week forthe
   government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who onFriday said
   he would not accept any foreign intervention inMexico to deal with
   violent criminal gangs.Lopez Obrador saidMexico wouldhandle the
   problem.

   Earlier in the week, U.S. President Donald Trump said heplanned to
   designate Mexican cartels as terrorist groups,sparking concerns the
   move could serve as a prelude to a U.S. effort to intervene
   unilaterally in Mexico.

   U.S. Attorney General William Barr is due to visit Mexiconext week to
   discuss cooperation over security.

   Lopez Obrador took office a year ago pledging to pacify thecountry
   after more than a decade of gang-fueled violence.A series of recent
   security lapses has raised questionsabout the left-leaning
   administration's strategy.

   Criticism has focused on the November4 massacre of nine womenand
   children of U.S.-Mexican origin, and the armedforces' release of a
   captured son of drug lord Joaquin "ElChapo" Guzman under pressure from
   cartel gunmen in the city ofCuliacan.

   Coahuila has a history of gang violence, though the homicidetotal in
   the state is well below where it was seven years ago.

   National homicide levels are pushing record levels.

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