MEXICO CITY // Mexico appeared to strike a major blow against one faction of the hyper-violent Zetas cartel, with the navy announcing it has captured one of the country's most-wanted drug traffickers, Ivan Velazquez Caballero, known as El Taliban".
Velazquez Caballero has been fighting a bloody internal battle with top Zetas' leader Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, and officials have said the split was behind a recent surge in massacres and shootouts, particularly in northern Mexico.
"A person who is presumed to be, and acknowledges being, Ivan Velazquez Caballero, was captured in the state of San Luis Potosi" in north-central Mexico, the navy said in a statement on Wednesday.
Officials were presenting Velazquez Caballero to the media yesterday morning.
Also known as "Z-50," Velazquez Caballero has a 30 million peso (Dh8.4m) reward on his head.
If confirmed, Velazquez Caballero's arrest could calm some of the brutal violence that has hit border cities such as Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas, in recent weeks.
On September 14, eight men were found shot to death and one hanging from a bridge in Nuevo Laredo, territory traditionally controlled by Trevino Morales, alias "Z-40". Analysts say 14 bullet-ridden bodies stuffed in a van in mid-August in San Luis Potosi were men loyal to "El Taliban," and may have been left there as a warning by Trevino Morales' underlings.
Discussing recent fighting, a US official in Mexico who could not be named for security reason said earlier this week that "I think right now the uptick that I'm seeing is between `40' and `50'," referring to Trevino Morales and Velazquez Caballero by their "Z" aliases.
The Zetas cartel takes its name from a police radio code in which "Z" means "commander," and a number refers to rank.
The official said Velazquez Caballero appeared to have formed an alliance of convenience with the Knights Templar cartel based in southern Michoacan state for his fight with Trevino Morales.
Banners signed by various elements of the Zetas and hung from overpasses in several Mexican states appeared to confirm mutual hatred between Trevino Morales and Velazquez Caballero. In the obscenity-laden banners, the two capos accused each other of betraying their fellow traffickers and preying on civilians.
If the man arrested as "El Taliban" is confirmed, the development could strengthen Trevino Morales, who shares leadership of the Zetas with Heriberto Lazcano, alias "El Lazca."
The U.S. official played down recent speculation that Trevino Morales and Lazcano had also fallen out.
"I'm not familiar with a fight between him (Trevino Morales) and Lazca," the official said. "I think he and Lazca - Lazca is doing his thing and he is doing his, and they're still together from what I understand."
Lawmen and even competing drug capos picture Trevino as a brutal assassin who favors getting rid of foes by stuffing them into oil drums, dousing them with gasoline and setting them on fire, a practice known as a "guiso," a Spanish word for "stew".
The Zetas are already considered the hemisphere's most violent criminal organisation. They have been blamed for a large share of the tens of thousands of deaths in Mexico's war on drugs, though other gangs also have repeatedly committed mass slayings.
Running gun battles between Navy personnel and gunmen broke out late Wednesday in the border city of Piedras Negras, across the border from Eagle Pass, Texas.
Officials in the border state of Coahuila confirmed the shootouts, and state security spokesman Sergio Cisbeles said the confrontation was serious, but he could not immediately confirm whether there anyone was wounded or dead.
The Zetas have been known to be active in Coahuila state, but it was unclear whether the confrontations in Piedras Negras were related in any way to the capture of Velazquez Caballero.
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
The five pillars of Islam
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The Old Slave and the Mastiff
Patrick Chamoiseau
Translated from the French and Creole by Linda Coverdale
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
Top 5 concerns globally:
1. Unemployment
2. Spread of infectious diseases
3. Fiscal crises
4. Cyber attacks
5. Profound social instability
Top 5 concerns in the Mena region
1. Energy price shock
2. Fiscal crises
3. Spread of infectious diseases
4. Unmanageable inflation
5. Cyber attacks
Source: World Economic Foundation
Company%20profile
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Glossary of a stock market revolution
Reddit
A discussion website
Redditor
The users of Reddit
Robinhood
A smartphone app for buying and selling shares
Short seller
Selling a stock today in the belief its price will fall in the future
Short squeeze
Traders forced to buy a stock they are shorting
Naked short
An illegal practice
The%20specs
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