Mexican Marines Engage Zetas in Fresnillo, Zacatecas, in day long Battle

A five hour long shootout between members of Los Zetas and Mexican Marines on Friday in the community of San José de Lourdes, Zacatecas left a toll of 15 gunmen dead and 17 arrested. San Jose de Lourdes, a community of 5,000 inhabitants, is located in the municipality of Fresnillo, where Los Zetas have created one of several strongholds in Mexico’s central altiplano, or high plains.

The Naval ministry (Semar) reported that the shooting began when a unit of Marines conducting operations in San José de Lourdes was attacked by a large group of gunmen from a safe house.

The shooting wounded six Marines, who were all reported out of danger.

The fighting began at 6:00am and as of 7:00pm Marines were still conducting house to house searches in search of more suspects in San Jose. Residents of the community reported a large amount of explosions from grenades and heavy weapons during the fighting.

Between 8:00am and 11:00am gunmen hijacked buses, large trucks and passenger vehicles and used them for “narcobloqueos”, or blockades, on the main roadways in and out of Fresnillo to obstruct vehicular traffic and limit the movement of authorities.

Shooting was reported in the afternoon in the important religious center and pilgrimage site of Platero, also in the municipality of Fresnillo, where the church of the Santo Niño de Atocha is located.

Units of Federal Police and Army troops reinforced the Marines, manning checkpoints and searching the central bus station and hotels throughout the municipality.

According to the statement from the Naval Ministry a large number of arms and ammunition and several vehicles were also confiscated during the operation.

Initially the fighting in San Jose de Lourdes was reported as a street to street battle that began when a Marine patrol intercepted a large convoy carrying over 250 Zetas, but this version of events was later denied by Zacatecas’ State Attorney General, Arturo Nahle Garcia.

In his statement Nahle Garcia explained that the number of 250 pertained to the number of armed Zetas believed to reside in the municipality of Fresnillo.

The Attorney General revealed that Los Zetas have a headquarters in Fresnillo and use the city as a center of operations. He stated that the criminal group is also present in other parts of the state.

“Without a doubt, Fresnillo is important to them (Los Zetas), they set up camp here 5 or 6 years ago and it is only recently that we have begun to fight them with the help of federal forces. It seems that previously their presence was tolerated.”

One of the Zetas killed in the battle with state police in La Lobera, Jalisco this past June 14, where the 6 young female Zetas recruits were captured, was a mid level Zeta commander based in Fresnillo.

“Comandante Ardilla”, Heriberto Centeno Madrid, led a cell of approximately 50 sicarios  (assassins)that operated out of Fresnillo and was considered one of the most dangerous men in Zacatecas at the time of his death.

It is not known if intelligence gathered at La Lobera and from the interrogation of the Zetas captured there led to the location of the safehouses attacked by the Marines in San Jose de Lourdes.

The Rest @ Borderland Beat

Chavez Protests Sanctions for Helping FARC

ARACAS — President Hugo Chavez challenged US President Barack Obama to prove US claims that four senior Venezuelan officials are involved in drugs and arms trafficking, as the foreign ministry formally protested US sanctions on the officials.

Washington on Thursday accused the Venezuelan officials of aiding the leftist Colombian guerrilla group FARC and put them on a list of narcotics kingpins subject to sanctions.

"I challenge president Obama to show proof of this outrage," Chavez told reporters at the Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas.

The US move "is part of the Yankee empire's determination to place Venezuela one day on the list of failed states or ... countries that support terrorism," Chavez said.

Washington identified the men as Major General Cliver Alcala; ruling party lawmaker Freddy Bernal; Amilcar Figueroa, a delegate to the Latin American Parliament; and intelligence official Ramon Madriz.

Chavez said he spoke out to "defend the honor of these four compatriots who were unjustly named on the list."
Venezuelan authorities delivered a note of protest over the sanctions to the US embassy's charge d'affairs Kelly Keiderling on Friday, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Relations have been tense between the two countries for years, and the countries have not exchanged ambassadors since late 2010.

The US Treasury Department action on Thursday authorizes the seizure of any assets the four men may have in the United States and prohibits US citizens from doing business with them.

The four were targeted for "acting for or on behalf of the narco-terrorist organization the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), often in direct support of its narcotics and arms trafficking activities," the Treasury Department said in a statement.

The head of the department's Office of Foreign Assets Control described the four as "key facilitators of arms, security, training and other assistance in support of the FARC's operations in Venezuela."

The Rest @  AFP

Jean Baptiste Kingery Moinssonm in Mexican for Arms Trafficking

CNN) -- Mexican authorities have an American citizen in custody who they say is suspected of trafficking firearms and grenades to a major Mexican drug cartel.

According to Mexico's attorney general's office, Jean Baptiste Kingery Moinssonm was allegedly smuggling firearm and grenade parts into the country. Once the goods were in Mexican territory, Moinssonm allegedly assembled and sold the weapons to the Sinaloa cartel.
Mexican federal police took Moinssonm into custody in Mazatlan, a beach resort in the Pacific state of Sinaloa, authorities said.

According to a news release Tuesday from the attorney general's office, Moinssonm was the target of a joint investigation by Mexico's Anti-Organized Crime Unit (SIEDO) and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on suspicion of smuggling grenade components and firearm parts through the border cities of Calexico, California; and Mexicali, Baja California.

ATF officials were not immediately available for comment on the attorney general's statement.
The statement said Moinssonm allegedly bought grenade components and firearm parts in gun shops in the United States and through the internet, and the weapons subsequently would be smuggled into Mexico for sale there.

A Mexican judge issued an arrest and search warrant targeting an address in Mazatlan, where the suspect was living. Mexican federal police said they seized a Hummer truck, three .22 caliber rifles and two collectible firearms.

Mexican federal police said they searched five other addresses in Mazatlan tied to the suspect and found an active fragmentation grenade, gunpowder, parts for high-caliber rifles, bullets and grenade parts.

Last April 13, Mexican police detained two Mexican suspects in the state of Baja California who were in possession of 192 inactive grenades, eight bullet-proof vests, and multiple firearm parts.
The two suspects detained in Baja California blew the whistle on another American citizen who was detained August 11 in Mexicali, Baja California. That suspect, identified by the Mexican attorney general's office as Habib Sayb Mujica, is being held under a 40-day detention order issued by a judge.

Tuesday's statement from the attorney general's office said Mujica gave police information later used to capture Moinssonm in Mazatlan.

The Rest @ CNN

Jean Baptiste Kingery Moinssonm in Mexican for Arms Trafficking

CNN) -- Mexican authorities have an American citizen in custody who they say is suspected of trafficking firearms and grenades to a major Mexican drug cartel.

According to Mexico's attorney general's office, Jean Baptiste Kingery Moinssonm was allegedly smuggling firearm and grenade parts into the country. Once the goods were in Mexican territory, Moinssonm allegedly assembled and sold the weapons to the Sinaloa cartel.
Mexican federal police took Moinssonm into custody in Mazatlan, a beach resort in the Pacific state of Sinaloa, authorities said.

According to a news release Tuesday from the attorney general's office, Moinssonm was the target of a joint investigation by Mexico's Anti-Organized Crime Unit (SIEDO) and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on suspicion of smuggling grenade components and firearm parts through the border cities of Calexico, California; and Mexicali, Baja California.

ATF officials were not immediately available for comment on the attorney general's statement.
The statement said Moinssonm allegedly bought grenade components and firearm parts in gun shops in the United States and through the internet, and the weapons subsequently would be smuggled into Mexico for sale there.

A Mexican judge issued an arrest and search warrant targeting an address in Mazatlan, where the suspect was living. Mexican federal police said they seized a Hummer truck, three .22 caliber rifles and two collectible firearms.

Mexican federal police said they searched five other addresses in Mazatlan tied to the suspect and found an active fragmentation grenade, gunpowder, parts for high-caliber rifles, bullets and grenade parts.

Last April 13, Mexican police detained two Mexican suspects in the state of Baja California who were in possession of 192 inactive grenades, eight bullet-proof vests, and multiple firearm parts.
The two suspects detained in Baja California blew the whistle on another American citizen who was detained August 11 in Mexicali, Baja California. That suspect, identified by the Mexican attorney general's office as Habib Sayb Mujica, is being held under a 40-day detention order issued by a judge.

Tuesday's statement from the attorney general's office said Mujica gave police information later used to capture Moinssonm in Mazatlan.

The Rest @ CNN

Report of Hezbollah Base in Cuba

Hezbollah has established a center of operations in Cuba in order to expand its terrorist activity and facilitate an attack on an Israeli target in South America, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported.

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Shiite terror group to use operations center to launch attack on Israeli target in South America,
Hezbollah has established a center of operations in Cuba in order to expand its terrorist activity and facilitate an attack on an Israeli target in South America, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported.

According to Yedioth Ahronoth, the attack is meant to avenge the death of Hezbollah commander Imad Mughniyah. The organization alleges that Israel was behind his 2008 assassination.

• According to the report, three Hezbollah members have already arrived in Cuba with the purpose of establishing a terrorist cell there.
• The cell is to include 23 operatives, hand-picked by Talal Hamia, a senior member tasked with heading the covert operation.

The operation, titled "The Caribbean Case," was reportedly allocated a budget of $1.5 million. The Cuba base is to be initially used for logistics purposes, including intelligence collection, networking and document forgery.

Hezbollah has been active in South America for quite some time now, primarily in Paraguay, Brazil and Venezuela, the report notes.

The Rest @ YNET NEWS