Massive Gun Battle Erupts In Mexico Over Son Of Drug Kingpin 'El Chapo' - NPR

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Smoke from burning cars rises in Culiacán, Mexico, on Thursday, after an intense gunfight between security forces and gunmen linked to the Sinaloa drug cartel. Hector Parra/AP hide caption

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Hector Parra/AP

Heavily armed gunmen went on a shooting rampage through the city of Culiacán, the capital of Sinaloa state on Mexico's Pacific coast, battling security forces after authorities attempted to arrest a son of imprisoned drug lord Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.

The gunfire from what appeared to be sniper rifles and truck-mounted machine guns sent residents of the western city scrambling for cover. Burning vehicles littered the streets as the gunmen faced off against National Guard, army and police.

#Más: El enfrentamiento inició en el Sector Tres Ríos, pero se ha extendido a otros puntos de #Culiacán.

Vean el tipo de armas que se están usando. pic.twitter.com/sLXtMeUTHk

— Carlos Zúñiga Pérez (@Carloszup) October 17, 2019

Mexico's security secretary, Alfonso Durazo, said the fighting began when about 30 National Guard and army troops patrolling the city were fired on from a house occupied by Ovidio Guzmán López, who is wanted in the U.S. on drug trafficking charges.

Durazo said the security forces took control of the house and found Guzmán inside. Soon after, the house was surrounded by "a greater force" of heavily armed gunmen and the troops withdrew.

"With the goal of safeguarding the well-being and tranquility of Culiacán society, officials in the security Cabinet decided to suspend the actions," he said.

Durazo did not say whether authorities arrested Guzmán or let him go.

Shortly after the confrontation, gunmen – some wearing black masks — took off on a rampage, driving through the city in trucks firing heavy caliber weapons.

Videos posted to social media show multiple gunmen shooting down major thoroughfares. Residents abandoning cars and burning vehicles are seen on multiple roads.

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A Feb. 2014 photo of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, the head of Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel, being escorted to a helicopter in Mexico City following his capture in the beach resort town of Mazatlan. Eduardo Verdugo/AP hide caption

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Eduardo Verdugo/AP

Cristóbal Castañeda, the public safety director for Sinaloa state, told Milenio television that people had been wounded in the firing, but gave no figures. He did not rule out that there were deaths, according to The Associated Press.

El Chapo was tried this year in a U.S. court and sentenced to life in prison. His sons have reportedly taken over the Sinaloa drug cartel, considered Mexico's most powerful organized crime syndicate.

José Luis González Meza, a lawyer speaking on behalf of the Guzmáns tells the AP that the family reports that "Ovidio is alive and free," but he did not elaborate.

Ovidio Guzmán was indicted in 2018 by a grand jury in Washington, along with a fourth brother, for the alleged trafficking of cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana.

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https://www.npr.org/2019/10/18/771216750/massive-gun-battle-erupts-in-mexico-over-son-of-drug-kingpin-el-chapo

2019-10-18 09:04:00Z
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Donald Trump compares praises his own 'unconventional' approach in Syria cease-fire - The Telegraph

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2019-10-18 08:29:19Z
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Boris Johnson scrambles for support on Brexit deal: Live updates - CNN International

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After months of tortured negotiations, Prime Minister Boris Johnson did what few thought he could (or even wanted) to do, and negotiated a Brexit deal.

As European leaders gathered for an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday, Johnson and EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker announced a breakthrough. "Where there's a will, there's a deal," Juncker said on Twitter, while Johnson hailed an "excellent" pact.

"The extraction having been done, the building now begins," Johnson told reporters shortly afterwards, before tucking into a roast veal dinner with the remaining 27 EU leaders.

The agreement replaces former PM Theresa May's derided backstop mechanism with a solution that she dismissed long ago -- putting a customs border in the Irish sea, and maintaining some EU regulations in Northern Ireland, but not in the rest of the UK.

It was instantly attacked by opposition MPs but promoted by Johnson's allies, who lauded their leader for doing what was once considered impossible.

But that was the easy part.

Now, Johnson faces the fight of his political life to raise support for the deal in Parliament. And he only has one day in which to do it, before a historic sitting on Saturday in which the next phase of Brexit will be decided.

With a razor-tight margin expected, every vote will count. So prepare for a frenzied day in Westminster, as the Prime Minister gets back from Brussels and attempts to drum up support for his plan.

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https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/brexit-boris-johnson-deal-dle-intl/index.html

2019-10-18 09:09:00Z
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Syria cease-fire in question after fighting, shelling reported - Fox News

Just hours after President Trump announced a cease-fire between Turkish and Kurdish-led forces in Syria, journalists have reported continued fighting in the Syrian town of Ras al-Ayn on Friday morning, while other areas have reported relative calm since the agreement.

Journalists from the Associated Press reported witnessing shelling and said they could see smoke billowing around the town, which sits along the border with Turkey. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, reported intermittent clashes in Ras al-Ayn, but calm elsewhere.

ROMNEY SLAMS TRUMP OVER TROOP PULLOUT

Reuters also reported machine-gun fire and shelling that could be heard from a border town in Turkey near Ra al-Ayn.

Oct. 17: In this photo taken from the Turkish side of the border between Turkey and Syria, in Ceylanpinar, Sanliurfa province, southeastern Turkey, flames and smoke billow from a fire on a target in Ras al-Ayn, Syria, caused by shelling by Turkish forces. (Associated Press)

Trump had praised the cease-fire agreement as "a great day for civilization." He pointed to it as a victory after being criticized for his decision to withdraw U.S. forces from the region. At a rally on Thursday, he said it was his “unconventional” approach that led to the deal.

The agreement requires the Kurdish fighters to vacate a swath of territory in Syria along the Turkish border, largely solidifying Turkey's position.

A senior military official -- who worked on designing the U.S. anti-ISIS strategy with both the Kurds and the Turks -- told Fox News earlier that the 120-hour cease-fire had little chance of success.

"There is no way the Kurds can leave that security zone," the source said. "There are thousands of Kurds who live in what the Turks want as a buffer zone. That’s what these fighters’ families live. That is where they are from."

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Vice President Mike Pence told Fox News in an exclusive interview that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan knows Trump “says what he means" when he talks about slapping new sanctions on Turkey if its military defies the terms of the agreement.

Pence acknowledged the Trump administration was grateful to the Kurds that "helped us defeat ISIS," but point out that Turkey "had very real issues of terrorism and ISIS and the PKK organization, a Kurdish terrorist group the United States recognized as a terrorist organization many years ago."

Fox News' Jennifer Griffin, Melissa Leon and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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2019-10-18 07:05:18Z
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Son of Mexican drug lord 'El Chapo' Guzman at center of shootout - CNN

Mexican federal troops had initially detained Ovidio Guzman Lopez, 28, in the northern city of Culiacan, in what Mexico's State Security Secretary Cristoban Castanillo called a "federally-coordinated operation."

But Security Minister Alfonso Durazo has told Reuters that he was later released, saying the decision was taken to protect lives.

Suspected members of the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel appeared to overpower the security forces during the shootout, who later suspended operations.

According to CNN affiliate ADN40, armored vehicles with military-grade machinery exchanged heavy artillery against federal troops in Culiacan, in the heart of Sinaloa.

The shootout forced many residents to flee in panic, others remained locked in their homes while outside, troops engaged in intense gun battles throughout the day. Residents have been asked to stay inside and schools have been closed until further notice, officials said, according to ADN40.

Images on social media appeared to show the terror unleashed on the inhabitants of Culiacan. Plumes of black smoke billowed on the horizon while on the ground, mothers coddled their children while searching for cover behind parked cars.

Late Thursday Durazo said government operations in Culiacan had been suspended following a violent back and forth between federal entities and criminal groups.

Durazo said that law enforcement officers and members of the Mexican National Guard were conducting a routine patrol when they were attacked by people inside a home in the city at around 3:30 p.m. local time (4:30 p.m. ET).

The patrol unit fought back and took control of the house, finding four occupants inside. Authorities identified one of the occupants as Ovidio Guzman Lopez.

During the confrontation, other members of an organized criminal group arrived on scene, with more firepower than authorities. Violent attacks also erupted in different parts of the city creating "a situation of panic," Durazo said.

With the "purpose of safeguarding the security and tranquility of the Culiacan society, the officials of the Cabinet of Security agreed to suspend said actions."

Who is Ovidio Guzman Lopez?

Ovidio Guzman Lopez is the son of Guzman and his second wife, Griselda Lopez. He is believed to have a large role in the Sinaloa cartel, according to the US Treasury Department.

In February, Ovidio Guzman Lopez was charged with conspiracy to distribute drugs to be imported into the US, along with his brother Joaquin Guzman Lopez, 34, by the US Department of Justice.

Prosecutors said that from April 2008 through April 2018, the brothers conspired to distribute cocaine, marijuana and methamphetamine from Mexico and other places to be imported into the US.

In July, their father -- the once-powerful leader of the Sinaloa cartel -- was sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years in the US.

Guzman was convicted in February on 10 federal charges, including murder conspiracies, running a continuing criminal enterprise and other drug-related charges.

He was considered the most "powerful drug trafficker in the world" by the Treasury Department and his criminal enterprise spanned continents and triggered bloodshed throughout his native Mexico.

In 2015 he dramatically escaped from prison, riding on a motorcycle through a tunnel that had been dug to his cell at the Altiplano maximum security federal prison.

Ray Donovan, the DEA special agent who spearheaded the 22-agency effort that led to Guzman's capture, told CNN in February that the Sinaloa cartel still supplies the vast majority of US drug markets.

"In fact, Chapo's sons are now risen through the ranks of the Sinaloa cartel and taken over Chapo's end of the organization," he said.

CNN's Natalie Gallón reported from Mexico City, Leyla Santiago reported from Washington DC, Maria Santana reported from New York, Helena DeMoura reported from Atlanta and Helen Regan wrote from Hong Kong.

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2019-10-18 07:40:00Z
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Turkey's Erdogan 'threw Trump's Syria letter in bin' - BBC News

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan put US President Donald Trump's letter "in the bin", the BBC has been told.

In the letter dated 9 October, and sent after US troops were pulled out of Syria, Mr Trump told Mr Erdogan: "Don't be a tough guy. Don't be a fool!"

President Trump was urging Turkey not to launch a military offensive against Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria, but Mr Erdogan ignored this request.

US Vice President Mike Pence is now in Ankara to push for a ceasefire.

The US has faced intense criticism for the withdrawal of troops, which critics say gave Turkey the green light to launch the military attack.

In recent years, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) alliance has been a critical ally to the US in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria.

There are fears that the destabilisation of northern Syria could lead to a jihadist resurgence.

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The SDF is dominated by the members of a Kurdish militia called the People's Protection Units (YPG).

Turkey says the YPG is an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a rebel group fighting for Kurdish autonomy in the region.

What did Trump's letter say?

In his letter to President Erdogan, Mr Trump wrote: "Let's work out a good deal! You don't want to be responsible for slaughtering thousands of people, and I don't want to be responsible for destroying the Turkish economy - and I will.

"History will look upon you favourably if you get this done the right and humane way. It will look upon you forever as the devil if good things don't happen."

In response, Turkish presidential sources told BBC Turkish: "President Erdogan received the letter, thoroughly rejected it and put it in the bin."

It is hard to imagine language like it in many letters between presidents.

Donald Trump's mixture of threats and locker-room banter infuriated Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. His staff told the BBC that he threw the letter into the bin and launched the Syrian operation the same day. That could be proof there was no Trumpian green light.

But ever since President Obama partnered up with the Syrian Kurds of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) against the jihadists of IS it was clear the arrangement would lead to problems with the Turks. That's because the SDF is very close to the Turkish Kurds of the PKK. Turkey says they are two halves of the same terror group.

Presidents Erdogan and Trump discussed military action last December. Diplomatic sources here in Ankara suggest that Turkey's broader strategic objective was to detach the Kurds and the Americans.

That, at any rate, has happened.

The diplomatic debacle that has surrounded events in and around Syria is the background to President Erdogan's meeting in Ankara with a US delegation headed by Vice-President Mike Pence, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. It is hard to find common ground between the two sides.

How have others responded to the crisis?

Much of the criticism levelled at Mr Trump has come from within his own party.

In a rare bipartisan rebuke, 129 members of the president's Republican Party in the House of Representatives joined Democrats to formally denounce the move in a vote on Wednesday.

The joint resolution, which also called on President Erdogan to immediately cease military operations against Kurdish-led forces, was voted in by 354-60.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also held an apparently explosive meeting with President Trump on the issue, which led to her and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer walking out of the room.

Republican leaders said Ms Pelosi's behaviour was "unbecoming", and criticised her for "storming out".

Ms Pelosi and Mr Trump also each accused the other of having a "meltdown", with the president later tweeting a photo of their confrontation.

But the image has been praised by Democrats, who said it was "iconic" and showed Ms Pelosi's "finest moment". Ms Pelosi also made the photo her top image on Twitter.

What has Trump said?

Earlier on Wednesday, President Trump said the US should not be intervening in Turkey's military operation in Syria because it is "not our border", and called the former US allies the Kurds "no angels".

"They have a problem at a border," he told reporters at the White House. "It's not our border. We shouldn't be losing lives over it."

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The president also said he thought the situation on the Turkey-Syria border was "strategically brilliant" for the US.

"Our soldiers are out of there. Our soldiers are totally safe. They've got to work it out. Maybe they can do it without fighting," he said.

"We're watching and we're negotiating and we're trying to get Turkey to do the right thing, because we'd like to stop wars regardless."

On the Kurds, he added: "They fought with us. We made a lot of money for them to fight with us, and that's okay. They did well when they fought with us. They didn't do so well when they didn't fight with us."

What is the context?

Turkish troops and allied Syrian rebels launched the offensive in northern Syria last week.

The aim, Turkey said, was to push YPG fighters back from the border, and to create a "safe zone" where up to two million Syrian refugees could be resettled.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based monitoring group, said on Wednesday that 71 civilians had been killed in Syria since the beginning of the operation.

However, the health authority of the Kurdish-led administration in the region put the civilian death toll at 218 on Thursday.

At least 185 SDF fighters, 164 pro-Turkish rebels and nine Turkish soldiers have also been killed in the fighting, according to the SOHR.

On Wednesday, Mr Trump also said that the PKK rebel group was "probably worse at terror and more of a terrorist threat in many ways than" IS.

The PKK is already designated as a foreign terrorist organisation by the US, and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist Entity.

• Will Islamic State re-emerge?
• Orphaned siblings rescued from Syrian camp

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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50080737

2019-10-17 12:00:00Z
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Boris Johnson's Brexit deal is DONE - The Sun

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2019-10-17 10:28:55Z
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