politics
February 24, 2026
Capture of 'El Mencho' in Mexico makes Diosdado Cabello the Main Target of the United States
The fall of one of Mexico's most powerful drug traffickers not only reconfigures the criminal map in that country. It also shifts Washington's strategic priorities in Latin America.
TL;DR
- The capture of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, 'El Mencho', a powerful Mexican drug trafficker, is reconfiguring the criminal map in Mexico.
- U.S. strategic priorities in Latin America have shifted, with focus now on Venezuelan official Diosdado Cabello, who has a $25 million bounty.
- The operation against 'El Mencho' resulted in violence in Mexico, including deaths of law enforcement officers and disruptions to airlines and educational institutions.
- While the U.S. provided intelligence, Mexico asserts its federal forces executed the operation against 'El Mencho'.
- With 'El Mencho' out of the picture, the geopolitical focus moves to Venezuela and Diosdado Cabello, who is accused of links to international drug trafficking.
- Cabello's position within the Venezuelan political elite makes his potential capture a more complex diplomatic and security challenge than that of 'El Mencho'.