CIUDAD VICTORIA, Mexico — Gangsters unleashed mayhem in the northern border city of Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas, blocking major avenues, burning vehicles and engaging soldiers in shootouts that left one suspected gunman dead. The Tamaulipas state security agency known as the Coordinating Group for the Construction of Peace in Tamaulipas said armed men carjacked civilians and also seized large trucks late Friday and used them to blockade main streets, including some leading to international border bridges, though operations at crossings were not affected. At least three vehicles were torched while others were upended or simply abandoned, and charred cars remained on the streets Saturday waiting for authorities to remove them. The U.S. consulate in Nuevo Laredo issued a security alert overnight warning its personnel to shelter in place due to the “multiple gunfights and blockades throughout the city.” On Saturday afternoon it published another alert saying its employees were “subject to restrictions on their movements and an evening curfew until further notice.”

Source: International New York Times November 16, 2019 20:48 UTC