Chiapas.- Since Friday night there have been shootouts on federal highway number 200, in the section from Frontera Comalapa to Motozintla, near Amatenango de la Frontera, Chiapas. Three public transport vehicles were set on fire during these clashes, according to residents and authorities. 

The Chiapas Border Region has been rocked by fighting between criminal groups in the municipalities of Frontera Comalapa, Chicomuselo and Teopisca. Shootings, roadblocks and burning of vehicles have plunged these towns into violence. 

In Frontera Comalapa, two rival criminal organizations dispute control of the territory. One of the groups took the municipal seat and Armed men are at the main entrances. 

Residents point out that the city is practically paralyzed, with armed men linked to the cartel blocking entrances and exits. The situation led to the displacement of more than three thousand people in communities such as El Lajerío and Nueva Independencia, where armed clashes had previously taken place between May 22 and 26. 

In Chicomuselo, the situation also worsened. Witnesses reported the entry of heavily armed men into white vans circulated with impunity through the streets. Motorcycle taxis and a dump truck were arrested to pressure the drivers to return to the MAIZ (Zapatista Indigenous Agrarian Movement) organization, linked to the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel (CJNG), after having disassociated themselves weeks ago. 

Violence intensified in the region, with armed clashes in the vicinity of Amatenango de la Frontera. However, the number of victims remains unknown. Armed Tzotzil indigenous people established a checkpoint in the Vista Hermosa community, near Betania, in the municipality of Teopisca. Transporters were warned to avoid the area. 

 The Chiapas border region faces a security crisis as these criminal groups fight for territorial control. 

 Source: Latinus 

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