The Mexican state of Sinaloa is facing a security crisis that has intensified since the beginning of the conflict between the group affiliated with Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and the group led by the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. The conflict was allegedly triggered by the kidnapping and transfer of the former to the United States by Joaquín Guzmán López in July 2024. According to the Sinaloa newspaper Noroeste, from September 9, 2024, to December 19, 2025, 2,503 intentional homicides have accumulated, with an average of 5.2 cases per day. The Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) reported the deployment of 180 personnel from the Mexican Army's Special Forces Corps to the state of Sinaloa, as part of federal actions to reinforce security in the entity. According to a press release, on the morning of Saturday, December 20, 2025, the elements were transferred from Military Air Base No. 1, in Santa Lucía, State of Mexico, to Military Air Base No. 10, in Culiacán, Sinaloa. The transfer was carried out on board a Boeing 737/800 aircraft and a Mexican Air Force Spartan C-27J heavy transport aircraft, with the objective of “reinforcing the operational deployment maintained by the 9th Military Zone in that federal entity.” Sedena pointed out that the personnel sent will contribute to strengthening the joint actions carried out by the Mexican Army, the Air Force, and the National Guard in the region, with the purpose of “inhibiting the illicit activities of criminal groups” with a presence in the region. The mission of these units is to act in coordination with federal, state, and municipal authorities through tasks of deterrence, prevention, and patrol. In this sense, it emphasized that the operations will be carried out “adhering to what is established in the National Law on the Use of Force and respecting human rights at all times, for the benefit of the Sinaloense population.” The military deployment occurs in a context of sustained violence in the state. In the same period, 2,964 people were deprived of their liberty, representing an average of 6.3 cases per day, a figure that even exceeds the number of homicides. During that period, 8,797 stolen vehicles were also counted, with an average of 18.8 per day; 1,982 people were detained, and 159 people were killed, according to the general balance prepared by the media based on official data.
