Shootout Between Warring Cartels Leaves 16 Dead in Southern Mexico

Mexican army soldiers stand next to a homemade armored vehicle with alleged identification of a drug cartel after an armed confrontation in Las Tunas, Tecpan de Galeana, Guerrero state, Mexico, on Oct. 24, 2024. Francisco Robles/AFP via Getty Images

MEXICO CITY—A shootout between two battling criminal groups in Mexico’s southern Pacific state of Guerrero on Thursday left 16 people dead, authorities said, as the country has been hit by a wave of recent violence.

Around 5 a.m. on Thursday morning, warring cartels were facing off in the state’s rural, mountainous region, which has become a battleground in past years as groups work to expand their territory.