Los iluminación inferior encendida.

[corvinus_quintus]

"The drones fly high, cruising up to 1,000 meters which makes them hard to spot, the villagers say. They use their release mechanism to unleash makeshift bombs of explosives packed into metal casings such as old fire extinguishers that suddenly come hurtling down. The devices set homes ablaze, blow holes in walls, and release piercing hot shrapnel into people’s flesh."

"Mexico’s crime cartels have stepped up their use of weaponized drones, especially in the states of Guerrero and Michoacán, adding yet another bloody element to the hybrid conflict that plagues swathes of the country. They are smaller and less lethal than drones used in Ukraine or Syria and have caused few casualties so far when compared to the tens of thousands killed here by bullets. But they sow terror as attacks come unannounced at anytime and villagers flee their homes in fear."

"Making people run from their homes is forced displacement, which Villa claims is an objective of the attacks. In Guerrero, a cartel called La Familia Michoacana is alleged to be behind the drones as it tries to expand its territory from the mountains to the ocean. A decade ago, the gangsters here fought over opium fields but now they want turf to shakedown anything that can. “They want to take over the region and everything that is here: the cattle ranching, the wood trade, the mangos, the coconuts, the beaches,” Villa says."

"Cartels also use drones to directly target the homes of gangster bosses, making them look vulnerable in their own terrain. The bombs will strike grandiose houses that stand out in the ramshackle Guerrero towns and are alleged to belong to local crime chiefs."

"Mexican cartels have had weaponized drones since at least 2017. However, for several years there were just scattered cases of machines that didn’t go off and then “suicide drones” packed with explosives that flew into their targets. In 2021, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel began using more sophisticated devices against rivals and Mexican soldiers in Michoacán. Their enemies responded with their own drones reportedly run by Colombian mercenaries. Last year, La Familia launched its drone campaign in Guerrero and has escalated attacks since."

"The drone war in Guerrero has two fronts. The first is in the arid mountains of La Tierra Caliente where La Familia battles a force called Los Tlacos. The second is in the Costa Grande region where green mountains slope down to golden beaches on the Pacific Ocean. Here, La Familia confronts older local crime families that lack a strong paramilitary force. We travel this area and its municipalities of Técpan and Petatlán looking at damaged buildings and talking to witnesses."

...

“They have drone pilots, specialists to control them…They have plenty of drones so even if a carrier [a mule] loses some they don’t care,” Fernando said. “They want control, to control the people…This is just beginning.”