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Violence and a Shift in Sinaloa
Though cartel violence has made Sinaloa state notorious over the last several years, the state has experienced an unprecedented number of drug-related homicides during the past few weeks. According to tallies by Mexican newspapers, the state averaged about 7.2 killings per day over a five-day period in the last two weeks. By comparison, the average daily number of cartel-related murders for the entire country was about 7.5 during 2007. With the daily homicide rate for this one state now equal to the daily rate for the entire country last year, it is easy to see why the state qualifies as a hot spot.
This past week the Mexican government responded to the deteriorating security situation in Sinaloa by deploying an additional 1,400 federal law enforcement agents to the area to augment the approximately 700 sent there earlier this summer. Military forces in the area are believed to number just over 2,000. In addition to dealing with an increase in cartel violence and expanding cartel arsenals, the federal reinforcements in Sinaloa will also contend with the effects of expanding work stoppages on the part of local law enforcement agencies that have been cooperating with federal anti-cartel efforts. The strikes are reminiscent of what occurred in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, earlier in 2008 when local law enforcement became fed up with being asked to cooperate with federal authorities who were simultaneously investigating them for links to organized crime.
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