Did Trump administration give Mexico intel for El Mencho killing? Karoline Leavitt responds

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Sunday claimed that the US had a major role in the El Mencho killing in Mexico on the day, which has created ripples across the country and its neighbours.

According to Leavitt, the US provided with intelligence support to the Mexican government on the killing of El Mencho and assisted it with the major operation to bring down the drug cartel in Jalisco.

“The United States provided intelligence support to the Mexican government in order to assist with an operation in Talpalpa, Jalisco, Mexico, in which Nemesio ‘El Mencho’ Oseguera Cervantes, an infamous drug lord and leader within the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, was eliminated,” Trump aide Karoline Leavitt said.

She noted that El Mencho was a top target of the Trump administration, with his cartel being one of the top fentanyl traffickers into the US — a topic that has created rifts between the neighbouring countries.

“‘El Mencho’ was a was a top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland,” Leavitt said in a post on X.

“Last year, President Trump rightfully designated the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization — because that’s exactly what it is. In this operation, three additional cartel members were killed, three were wounded, and two were arrested,” she added, describing the operation.

The leader of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera Cervantes, was killed on Sunday following an operation led by the Mexican military, the government announced.

In her post, Leavitt said that Trump's motive to make narcoterrorists face justice was clear.

“President Trump has been very clear — the United States will ensure narcoterrorists sending deadly drugs to our homeland are forced to face the wrath of justice they have long deserved,” she said.

El Mencho was wanted by US authorities, who offered a bounty of up to $15 million for information leading to his arrest.

The White House Press Secretary also thanked the Mexican military for their successful execution of the El Mencho killing and the attack on his cartel.

“The Trump Administration also commends and thanks the Mexican military for their cooperation and successful execution of this operation,” she said.

El Mencho killed

The Mexican Army on Sunday announced it had killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, aka “El Mencho”, thereby taking down what had become Mexico's most notorious drug cartel.

The military action on El Mencho and his cartel pushed swaths of the nation into chaos.

The killing of El Mencho was met with a forceful reaction from the cartel, known by its Spanish initials CJNG, members of which burned down cars and blocked roads in nearly a dozen Mexican states, sending people into panic.

Jalisco's capital, Guadalajara, was turned into a ghost town Sunday night as civilians avoided going out.

Security forces from several federal branches of Mexico's military carried out the operation in the town of Tapalpa in the western state of Jalisco.

The suspected members of the cartel also set buses on fire, blocked roads in the area, and clashed with authorities, Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus Navarro said.