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UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

JOINT TASK FORCE NORTHOPEN SOURCE REPORT

10 August 2010

(U) This document is UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY and portions may be exemptfrom mandatory disclosure under FOIA. DOD 5400.7R, "DoD Freedom of Information Act Program",DoD Directive 5230.9, "Clearance of DOD Information for Public Release", and DoD Instruction5230.29, "Security and Policy Review of DOD Information for Public Release" apply.

(U) FAIR USE NOTICE . This document may contain copyrighted material whose use has not beenspecifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making it available to recipients who haveexpressed an interest in receiving information to advance their understanding of threat activities in theinterest of protecting the United States. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrightedmaterial as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrightedmaterial for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from thecopyright owner.

(U) NOTE : This product may contain articles, or links to articles, containing USPER information that hasbeen deemed necessary for the intended recipient to understand, assess, or act on the informationprovided. It should be handled in accordance with the recipient's intelligence oversight and informationhandling procedures.

(U) NOTE: Article titles are sometimes re-captioned. Articles may be shortened during editing.Source notations are accurate as of the date and time the article was collected. Some newssources will remove the original article within 24 hours of publication.

(U) NOTE FOR DOD CONSUMERS - This report may contain US Persons data authorized by DOD5240.1R. DOD recipients are cautioned to review for authorized retention IAW mission and IntelligenceOversight guidelines.

(U) Use of these news items and editorial comments do not reflect official endorsement by Joint Task Force North or the Department of Defense.

For further information on any item, please contact the JTF North J-2.

Compiled and Edited by: CW3 Brian Woodworth

Reviewed by: Mr. Bruce TruesdaleApproved for Release by: Mr. Sotero G. Reyes

CONTENTS: (Note: All active hyperlinks have been removed)

NORTHERN BORDER

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A. Cocaine Seizure at Pearson AirportB. Project O Viper C. Another Security Breach at Pearson Airport

SOUTHERN BORDER

D. The Drug War in Mexico: By Any Other Name It's Terrorism E. Cocaine Seizure at Brownsville B&M International BridgeF. Friday Night Shootout in Reynosa, TamaulipasG. Arrest of Kidnappers who Killed Governors Nephew H. Twelve Kidnap Victims Rescued in Nuevo LeonI. Soldiers Seize Cocaine at Cucapah Checkpoint in SonoraJ. Marijuana Farm Discovered in Tecate, Baja CaliforniaK. Four Bodies Found in Guerrero

CENTRAL and SOUTH AMERICA

L. Talks with FARC to End Violence

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A. COCAINE SEIZURE AT PEARSON AIRPORT

07 August 2010The Star

A woman has been arrested at Pearson airport after being caught with thousands of buttonscontaining cocaine. Officials from Canadian Border Services became suspicious of the more than3,000 large buttons being flown in from Barbados and questioned the wom an. Her answers justwerent adding up, said Insp. Steve Saunders of the RCMP, adding that the buttons looked likeoversized coat buttons. Police later discovered about 9 kg of cocaine, worth roughly $ 1 million,concealed inside the buttons, which Saund ers called significant, given the method of concealment. He says the seizure happened on July 17, but the information was not publiclyreleased in the early stages of the investigation. The previous day, RCMP officers from theairport detachment disrupted a cocaine ring using human couriers to smuggle the drug intoCanada. Another 9 kg of cocaine were confiscated in the earlier case. Sgt. Frank Gougeon saidthe two busts were not connected.

Source : [www.thestar.com/news/gta/crime/article/845236--woman-arrested-over-cocaine-filled-buttons]

B. PROJECT O VIPER

06 August 2010The London Free Press

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ONTARIO: A pile of cash seized in all, more than $ 460,000. Seven vehicles scooped up,including a luxury BMW. More than $ 170,000 worth of drugs crack cocaine, heroin and pot

intercepted from the street. Calling it a significant bust that puts a dent in mid -level drugdealing, police Thursday rolled out the results of a two-month, London-area investigation(Ontario) in which seven people were charge d with dozens of offences among them. Any time

you can take away the proceeds of crime, thats significant, London police Chief Brad Duncansaid at a news conference. Its the proceeds that fuel the (illicit) drug industry, and this seizureputs a dent in their operations.

The joint drug investigation, dubbed Project O Viper, was led by London -area police including city police, the RCMP and the OPP. More than 50 city officers, RCMP and OPPofficers were involved in the probe, sparked by information obtained by street -level drug unitofficers. The suspects face a total of 32 criminal charges and 30 drug-related charges.

Seized were crack cocaine valued at $ 24,000, heroin worth $ 50,000 and marijuana valued atabout $ 100,000. Seven bags of cash were displayed at police headquarters, much of it seized

from bank safe-deposit boxes. A 2001 BMW luxury car was seized as proceeds from a crime.Six other cars were seized because police believe they were used to commit crimes. Police alsorecovered a stolen vehicle during their pre-dawn raids at six London residences and twoproperties west of Newbury near West Lorne (Ontario). Seven warrants were obtained to searchsafety deposit boxes at financial institutions, police said. This investigation targets street-levelsale of crack cocaine and the people responsible for distributing it, said Duncan. This is aninvestigation that is continuing and we do expect there will be further arrests and seizures.RCMP Chief Supt. Norm Mazerole praised the police team approach used. Targeting thistype of crime in our communities remains a key priority for us, he said. Teams like thiscontribute to the efficiency and effectiveness of our investigations. Charged are:

Conroy Rose, 42, of London, 18 charges for trafficking, possession of the proceeds of

crime and breach of recognizance.Oral Beadle, 45, of London, five counts of trafficking and two of possession of theproceeds of crime.Clive Stewart, 41, of London, one charge of trafficking.Courtney Gray, 35, of London, two counts of trafficking, two of possession of theproceeds of crime and two of breaching a recognizance.Shari-Lynn Rose, 25, of London, three counts each of trafficking and possession of theproceeds of crime.Hamid Golbaz, 34, of Newbury, two counts of trafficking, one of possession of theproceeds of crime and one of breach of recognizance, plus charges of possession of drugsand production of marijuana.

Source : [www.lfpress.com/news/london/2010/08/05/14933111.html]

C. ANOTHER SECURITY BREACH AT PEARSON AIRPORT

08 August 2010Toronto Sun

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Police are probing an alleged breach of security at Pearson airport after a handcuffed womanaccused of smuggling drugs escaped from detention and was nabbed by Peel Regional Policerunning along a road. Airport security officials are viewing video from security cameras atTerminal 1 for clues on how the woman escaped from a secure Customs Hall and to preventsimilar getaways in the future.

Peel police confirmed on Sunday that the woman was nabbed on July 28 running withhandcuffs in the Airport Rd., and Hwy. 409 area. The incident wasnt made public by theCanada Border Services Agency (CBSA) for security reasons. This sort of thing doesnthappen often at the airport, one Peel officer said. Sh e was arrested by our officers and returnedto Customs. The woman, who claimed to be visiting Canada, arrived on a flight from Jamaicaand was sent for a secondary check due to suspicious behavior, according to Customs officers,who spoke on the condition of anonymity. She was handcuffed and apparently sitting down in achair.

The investigating officer turned his back for a minute and she was gone, one officer said.

There was a major panic attack to find her. CBSA spokesman Vanessa Barrasa said the su spectwas selected by officers to undergo a secondary check after they found bottles of wine withsuspected cocaine inside. Barrasa said the cocaine had a street value of $ 150,000 and the suspectwas charged for importing a controlled substance. The suspect will likely be deported to Jamaicaif convicted of the offence, police said, adding they believe the suspect was being used as acourier by foreign drug lords. Earlier this month, there was also a security breach at MontrealsTrudeau International Airport after two Muslim women, whose identities were unchecked andconcealed by the veils they wore, were permitted to board an Air Canada flight to London,England.

Source : [www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/08/08/14959991.html]

D. THE DRUG WAR IN MEXICO: BY ANY OTHER NAME IT'S TERRORISM

09 August 2010 Mexidata

While the Mexican government has done all it can to impart an encouraging national imageabroad, and to keep the struggle against drug cartels, organized crime and other perpetrators of violence from being categorized as a war versus terrorism, said efforts would seem to have goneup in smoke. This insofar as car bombings by drug lords, their henchmen or others, like the twothat have been committed in recent weeks, are hard to depict as anything less than terrorism.Especially when coupled with Mexico's broader narcoterrorist violence, mayhem and deaths thathave reached record levels.

Details on the most recent car bombing, which took place in Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas, onAugust 5, at this writing have yet to be determined or made public, albeit for a police bulletinand news reports that for the most part included information from the preliminary police report.Yet the explosion that destroyed one vehicle, and damaged two adjacent patrol cars parked in astate police compound fortunately with no harm to police or bystanders, is being ascribed by

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authorities to a coche-bomba, a car bomb. The July 15 car bombing in Ciudad Jurez,Chihuahua, that shares the border with El Paso, Texas, was far more publicized andsensationalized, this of course because of where it occurred and due to the fact that it targetedfederal police, killed three people and wounded nine. Plus it was said to be the first car bombingagainst Mexican security forces in their fight against drug lords and narcotraffickers.

With respect to the car bombing count, the fact is since 1992 there have been at least five"vehicle born improvised explosive devices" that exploded, three of which appeared to be part of cartel infighting that unsuccessfully targeted Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada Garcia, a drug kingpinof the Sinaloa Cartel. The others, one in Chiapas and another in Acapulco, Guerrero, againstnearby quasi-government and military installations, were thought to be by small guerrilla groupsfor supposed social causes. Blame for the July 15, 2010 attack has been attributed to hit men forthe Jurez Cartel, with the bomb reportedly triggered by means of a cell phone. And theexplosives are thought to have been Tovex, not C-4 as reported by some.

Regarding C-4 plastic explosives, spokesmen for the office of Mexico's Attorney General were

adamant that it was not used. This maybe based on evidence, but too with a dose of politicalsensitivity related to the possibility that military-type plastic explosives, those often associatedwith terrorist bombings, covert actions and foreign intrigue, were utilized in Mexico. Tovex is awater gel explosive that has replaced dynamite almost entirely in mining, construction, oilseismic exploration, and a number of other industrial uses. And over the past decade there havebeen several known thefts of Tovex in Mexico. [1]

Fingers in most of the theft cases of the aforementioned industrial use explosives have beenpointed at so-called Mexican insurgents, especially those associated with the small PopularRevolutionary Army, the EPR, and its splinter groups. Said explosives were apparently thoseused by the EPR in well publicized bombings of central Mexico's natural gas pipelines in 2007.Yours truly wrote the following in 2007: "The explosives used, which are apparently in thehands of EPR associates, were stolen in two known robberies of mining and construction firms,the first in San Luis Potos in 2003, and the second in Oa xaca in 2006. According to MexicosOffice of the Attorney General (PGR), approximately 1,900 of the stolen 'RXL-788 emulsionexplosive' devices are in the hands of two EPR splinter groups, the Comando JaramillistaMorelense 23 de Mayo, and the Revoluti onary Armed Forces of the People (FARP)."[2]

Yet with the stolen devices, organized crime and drug lords too may be and/or have been involved. Furthermore, this is to say nothing of other explosives quite possibly acquired since,by hook or by crook. Any of which may be in use today and no matter what, in the hearts andminds of people their use is terrifying.

And yes today it is narcoterrorism.

The Mexican government, however, has ordered that the term narcoterrorism is not to be usednor accept ed. "We have no evidence of narcoterrorism in the country; () the motivation of these groups is economic, not ideological," Attorney General Arturo Chavez Chavez saidrecently.

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Splitting hairs, Federal Deputy Ardelio Vargas Fosado, who chairs the National DefenseCommittee in the lower house of Congress, said that car bomb attacks by drug traffickers are notterrorist acts. The Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) member said, "They cannot legally beconsidered terrorist acts since they do not meet all of the criteria noted in the Federal PenalCode."[3] Still, he continued, "explosives that generate agitation in social groups, causing fear

and panic in the people, are used in the practice of terrorism. The use of explosive devices,especially car bombs in the war against narcotrafficking, is very similar to terrorism criminally,which poses a clear challenge to authorities."

A retort for many came from the Catholic Church. Bishop Ral Vera, of Saltillo, Coahuila, saidthat narcoterrorism has been present in Mexico for years. He also said that to acknowledge thiscould involve funds of the criminal groups being frozen, this according to that established by theUN Security Council. He added that perhaps this detail explains the government's refusal torecognize the phenomenon. (La Jornada, Mexico, D.F., 8/07/10) Still somewhat cryptic, anopinion article disseminated by Bishop Vera's office entitled, "Why does the government evadetalking about narcoterrorism?," also suggests that the answer may lie in the UN Security Council

resolution against terrorist groups, which comes under Chapter VII of the United NationsCharter. "In said resolution the Council decides that any organization that is denounced beforethe UN by any of the member states as a terrorist group, may have its funds and other financialassets, or economic resources of persons who commit or intend to commit acts of terrorism or toparticipate in them or facilitate their commission, as well as all their associates, frozenimmediately."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] See MexiData.info: Bombings and Other Explosive Actions in Mexico (7/30/07); MexicanRebels and Their Assault on the Future (7/23/07); and Mexico's So-called "PopularRevolutionary Army" (7/16/07). [2] Ibid.

[3] Having gone through Mexico's Federal Penal Code (in Spanish), and looking at every Articlethat includes the keyword "terror" or a derivative thereof (and thus also seeing maybe how thecongressman came up with his spin), it appears to this observer that he is simply wrong andthat the two car bombings can and should be classified as terrorist acts.

The editor of MexiData.info, has spent 50 years in Mexico and Latin America, providingmultinational clients with actionable intelligence; country and political risk reporting and analysis; and business, lobbying, and problem resolution services.

Source : [www.mexidata.info/id2755.html]

Editorial Comment : Texas has asked for 1,000 National Guard soldiers to be sent to the borderto prevent violence from impacting innocent people along the U.S. border. The request was madetoday (August 9) in a letter delivered to the White House.

Spanish Source for Comment : [www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/700563.html] 09 August 2010

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E. COCAINE SEIZURE AT BROWNSVILLE B&M INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE

06 August 2010Valley Central

A Matamoros man is behind bars after he allegedly tried to smuggle more than $1.7 milliondollars worth of cocaine inside one of the world's smallest cars. U.S. Customs and BorderProtection (CBP) officers arrested Jorge Eduardo Flores-Hernandez on federal drug charges onThursday. The 26-year-old man drove up from Mexico at Brownsville's B&M InternationalBridge inside a 2002 BMW Mini Cooper.

Customs officers allegedly found 22 bundles with 54.5 pounds of cocaine packed into a hiddencompartment towards the rear of the vehicle. Authorities believe the drugs are worth about $1,744,000 dollars on the streets. Flores-Hernandez appeared before a U.S. Magistrate CourtJudge in Brownsville on Friday morning. Investigators told the News that Flores-Hernandez is aMexican citizen from Matamoros. The Judge denied bond for Flores-Hernandez until a

Wednesday afternoon hearing.Source : [www.valleycentral.com/news/story.aspx?id=493660]

F. FRIDAY NIGHT SHOOTOUT IN REYNOSA, TAMAULIPAS

08 August 2010Valley Central

Calm has returned to the beleaguered border city of Reynosa following a Friday night shootoutand explosions in the Colonia Las Fuentes. Users on the social media network Twitter reportedthe shootout Friday evening. Reynosa city officials confirmed a "situation of risk" around 7:58p.m. Friday. Authorities asked residents to avoid Bulevar Mil Cumbres and Bulevar delMaestro. In one warning posted at 9:01 p.m. Friday officials said, "Even though you no longerhear explosions, the situation of risk still continues for your safety." Reynosa officials lifted thealert at 9:21 p.m. Friday. According to reports on Twitter, both Saturday and Sunday have beencalm.

The Colonia Las Fuentes is located behind a popular shopping center that includes an H-E-Bgrocery store, Sanborns, a Chili's restaurant, a movie theater and Home Depot. Another shootoutthat involved a narcoblockade was reported in the same neighborhood back in April. A bus washijacked and three people were wounded during the April incident.

Source : [www.valleycentral.com/news/story.aspx?id=493885]

G. ARREST OF KIDNAPPERS WHO KILLED GO VERNORS NEPHEW

09 August 2010DiarioSummary Translation of Spanish Source: CW3 Brian Woodworth

http://www.valleycentral.com/news/story.aspx?id=447952http://www.valleycentral.com/news/story.aspx?id=447952

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The Office of the State Attorney General for Justice reports the arrest of six members of aSinaloa cartel cell who are accused of killing businessman, Mario Humberto Medina Vela, thenephew of the Governor elect, Csar Duarte Jquez. The Attorney General (for the State of Chihuahua) Patricia Gonzalez Rodriguez reported that the leader of the group, Elizabeth

Rodriguez Griego, alias La Doa, was shot 30 times and killed last Saturday at room 113 at theHoward Johnson hotel in Parral (Chihuahua), where she registered under the name of LauraAcosta Chidez.

The Attorney General asserted that the homicide of La Doa and a man who accompanied herled to the capture of criminals who were working in two criminal cells and who are identified as:

Luis Fernando AmaroJoel FavelaFrancisco Martin Gomez JimenezSebastin Rivas BilbaoLorenzo Javier Gurrola Carlos

Juan Carlos Hernandez

The Attorney General stated during a press conference that the suspects are implicated in 18homicides and 8 kidnappings, although the actual number could be higher. Among the membersof the criminal group is a former municipal police officer, Jesus Jos Reyes Aldaz, who was thepersonal bodyguard and driver for the former Public Security director, Lzaro Gaytn Aguirre,during the administration of Juan Alberto Blanco Zaldvar. He was fired from the policedepartment after getting caught stealing womens undergarments fr om a store on September 19,2006. Members of the criminal organization who have not yet been arrested are:

Jesus Jos Reyes Aldaz, alias El Chuy, former municipal police officerSal Omar Gamboa Perez, alias El Ptula

Salvador Govea Vargas, alias El Chava, former state police officer (CIPOL)Roberto Carlos Baca Martinez, alias El BetoEl DanyEl CuadoEl CoyoteEl LoboEl TontoEl LaloEl Ondeado

Reportedly, Marco Antonio Felix Cuevas, alias El Tony, from Culiacan, Sinaloa, could take overleadership of the organization. As a result, a reward of a half million pesos has been offered forinformation which leads to his capture. The suspects who are under arrest kidnappedbusinessmen or their relatives, and killed members of rival criminal organizations. During theoperation which led to their capture, authorities seized 4 safe houses and 9 new vehicles. Amongthe vehicles seized is a black Durango used during the attempted kidnapping of Mario HumbertoMedina, who ended up being shot and killed during the kidnapping attempt on July 14 outside abusiness owned by his family. The safe houses are located at:

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15300 Monte Coman in Colonia Quintas Carolinas V Etapa1210 Fernando Montes de Oca Street in Colonia 20 Aniversario4004 Ratkai Street in the San Francisco district3218 Dakota del Norte, in Colonia Quintas del Sol

The Office of the State Attorney General for Justice (PGJE) reported that the kidnappers arebelieved to be responsible for kidnappings of businessmen between 20 and 38 years of age andfor making ransom demands of up to 500,000 pesos. The suspects admitted to having killed aperson known as El 20 at the Los 3 Garcia bar and to having killed a man known as Bustillos. Inboth cases, the victims were killed because they worked for a rival criminal organization.

Spanish Source: [www.diario.com.mx/nota.php?notaid=3c7f17f1975abcaa8872e4e7d23dccd5]

Editorial Comment: Another news source reported slight difference in the names for two of thesuspects who are under arrest, identifying them as Luis Fernando Becerra and Joel FavelaHolgun. The gang received orders to kill from a man known as El Cholo. Marco Antonio Felix

Cuevas, alias El Tony , served as the kidnappers boss and has not yet been captured, accordingto another news source.

Spanish Source for Editorial Comment :[www.eldiariodechihuahua.com/notas.php?IDNOTA=204939&IDSECCION=Portada&IDREPORTERO=De%20la%20Redaccin] 09 August 2010

Editorial Comment : The full text of the news article did not name the town or city where thesafe houses were located but simply listed the street addresses and Colonia. However, anothernews source indicated that the safe houses were located in Chihuahua, Chihuahua. Another newssource provided an organizational chart and photos of some of the suspects. The gove rnors

nephew was killed during a failed kidnapping attempt in Chihuahua, Chihuahua.

Spanish Source for Photos : [www.oem.com.mx/elheraldodechihuahua/notas/n1739343.htm] 10August 2010Spanish Source for Comment : [www.elmonitorparral.com/?p=67778] 15 July 2010

H. TWELVE KIDNAP VICTIMS RESCUED IN NUEVO LEON

07 August 2010Yahoo.com

Marines rescued 12 people who allegedly were kidnapped by an organized crime gang in thenorthern border state of Nuevo Leon, one of the Mexican regions grappling with drug violence,the military said Saturday. The Department of Navy said the people had been kidnapped Aug. 3and 6 and were found Friday in a house in the municipality of Guadalupe, near Monterrey, thestate capital.

None of the abductors was arrested and their gang affiliation had not been determined, thestatement said. Mexico's northeastern border region, including Nuevo Leon, has been hit hard by

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escalating violence involving drug cartels, which also have branched out into kidnapping andextortion. The government blames much of the region's bloodshed on a turf war that erupted witha split between the Gulf cartel and the Los Zetas gang.

Source : [news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100807/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_drug_war_mexico]

I. SOLDIERS SEIZE COCAINE AT CUCAPAH CHECKPOINT IN SONORA

09 August 2010La Voz de la FronteraSummary Translation of Spanish Source: CW3 Brian Woodworth

SAN LUIS R.C. SONORA: One hundred and ninety kilograms of cocaine, methamphetamineand heroin having a value of 11.5 million dollars were seized at the Cucapah checkpoint,approximately 20 kilometers from San Luis Ro Colorado on the highway to Sonoyta. The driverof the tractor trailer truck which was supposed to be loaded with bananas was arrested but his

identity has not been disclosed. The driver is only described as a being 39 years old and is fromCuliacan, Sinaloa. According to preliminary investigations, the shipment left Colima, Colimaand was heading to Mexicali, Baja California. The vehicle is described as a white, 2007International with Federal Public Service plates 523-DV8 and is registered to Logstica Pacfico-Norte. The drugs were found in a hidden compartment in the walls of the vehicle during a routineinspection. Authorities seized 120 kilograms of cocaine in 116 packages, 60 kilograms of icein 115 packages and 10 kilograms of heroin in 115 packages. Under tight security, the vehiclewas transferred to the military base located in the community of Las Adelitas.

Spanish Source : [www.oem.com.mx/lavozdelafrontera/notas/n1738552.htm]

Editorial Comment : The city of Colima is the capital and main city of the Mexican state andmunicipality of the same name. It is one of the oldest cities in Mexico. In the 2005 census thecity had a population of 123,597 people, and its municipality had a population of 132,273. Thestate is located on the Pacific Ocean and is boarded to the north by the State of Jalisco and to theSouth by the State of Michoacan.

Source for Comment : [en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colima,_Colima]

J. MARIJUANA FARM DISCOVERED IN TECATE, BAJA CALIFORNIA

08 August 2010El Sol de TijuanaSummary Translation of Spanish Source: CW3 Brian Woodworth

Two marijuana fields measuring 30,000 square meters were discovered in Tecate. Militarypersonnel (SEDENA) while conducting ground patrols 28 kilometers to the south of themunicipality of Tecate discovered the two marijuana fields which contained plants that were 2meters tall.

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Spanish Source : [www.oem.com.mx/elsoldetijuana/notas/n1737136.htm]

K. FOUR BODIES FOUND IN GUERRERO

09 August 2010

Latin American Herald TribuneFour bullet-riddled bodies were found in the southern Mexican state of Guerrero, officials said.The bodies of four people killed gangland- style were found along with narcomessages in thecities of Tecoanapa and Petatlan. The bodies of Mario Uriostegui Hernandez, 20, and his brother,Ursulo, were found Saturday morning on the Ayutla-Tierra Colorada federal highway, theGuerrero Public Safety Secretariat said. Two other bodies were found a few minutes later on theAcapulco-Zihuatanejo highway near Loma del Toro, an area in the city of Petatlan, thesecretariat said. The two men had their hands bound and their eyes were covered with maskingtape, the secretariat said, adding that both had been shot in the back of the head.

Guerrero has been rocked by drug-related violence over the past six months as a gang led byEdgar Valdez Villarreal has fought a rival faction for control of the Beltran Leyva drug cartel.Control of the cartel has been up for grabs since powerful drug lord Arturo Beltran Leyva waskilled in a shootout with marines on Dec. 16 in Cuernavaca, the capital of Morelos state andmain bastion of the criminal organization.

The organization created by the five Beltran Leyva brothers Marcos Arturo, Mario Alberto,Carlos, Alfredo and Hector smuggles cocaine, marijuana and heroin. The cartel is alsoinvolved in people trafficking, money laundering, extortion, kidnapping, contract hits and armstrafficking. Two weeks after Arturo was killed, Carlos Beltran Leyva was arrested on Dec. 30 inCuliacan, the capital of Sinaloa state, where he was going by the alias of Carlos Gamez. Arturoand Mario Alberto shared the leadership of the Beltran Leyva cartel, which arose as a splintergroup of the powerful Sinaloa cartel led by J oaquin El Chapo (Shorty) Guzman. ()

Source : [www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=362315&CategoryId=14091]

Editorial Comment : A leading Mexican newspaper, El Universal, reported on August 10, 2010that a total of 6,994 people have been executed in all of Mexico so far this year.

Spanish Source for Comment : [www.eluniversal.com.mx/coberturas/esp207.html] August 10,2010

L. TALKS WITH FARC TO END VIOLENCE

07 August 2010Latin American Herald Tribune

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos told the FARC on Saturday that he is open to talksto put an end to the violence, but on condition that the rebel group gives up its weapons,kidnapping and drug trafficking. As long as they do not free their hostages, while they

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continue committing terrorist acts, as long as they do not return children recruited by force, whilethey continue to use mines and contaminate the fields of Colombia, we will continue to combatall those who practice violence without exception, Santos said in his inaugural address.

That was his response to the message from the maximum leader of the Revolutionary Armed

Forces of Colombia, or FARC, Guillermo Leon Saenz, alias Alfonso Cano, who proposedtalks to the new government in order to end the terrible situation the country i s going through,in a message recorded during the month of July and posted last week on the Internet.

To the illegal armed groups that speak again of dialogue and negotiation, I tell them that mygovernment will be open to any talks that seek to eradicate violence and build a more

prosperous, fair and just society, Santos said. But he also noted that there are some unalterable premises that must be complied with before talks can begin: giving up weapons, kidnapping,drug trafficking, extortion and i ntimidation.

He added that this is not some capricious request from the government of the moment, but the

cry of a nation that most of all desires peace and rejects those who persist in senseless,fratricidal violence. The new Colombian president promised not to rest until the rule of lawreigns supreme in every corner of the land, for which he asked the general staff of the armedforces to continue getting results and making sound progress in the fight against illegal armedgroups. I wish to repeat what I said before, the door to dialogue is not closed, Santos said,adding that he aspires to laying the foundation of true reconciliation, of genuine disarmament.

In his closing words, he said: It is possible to have a Colombia at peace, a C olombia withoutrebel warfare, and were going to show it can be done. Santos also said in his swearing- in address that one of his goals will be to rebuild relations withVenezuela and Ecuador, to reestablish the confidence while favoring diplomacy and p rudence. We want to live in peace with our neighbors, we will respect them so that they will respect us,Santos said before some 5,000 guests at his inauguration, including the president of Ecuador,Rafael Correa, and the foreign minister of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro.

Santos was sworn-in Saturday as the 59th president of Colombia after receiving the tricolor sashfrom the congressional speaker, Armando Benedetti.Present at the inauguration ceremony were some 20 high-ranking dignitaries, among heads of state and government and including Crown Prince Felipe of Spain.

Source : [www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=362215&CategoryId=12393]

UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY