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WSJ: FBI involved in Canadian trafficker’s arrest in Mexico despite ban on foreign agents

By
MND Staff
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A man in an FBI jacket watches a plane on a runway
FBI Director Kash Patel, seen here in a 2025 photo, traveled to Mexico City ahead of Ryan Wedding's arrest last week and flew back to the U.S. with the alleged drug trafficker in tow. (U.S. Justice Department)

President Claudia Sheinbaum asserted on Thursday that a Wall Street Journal report aligned with her government’s version of events regarding the arrest last week of alleged drug boss Ryan Wedding, even though it includes information she has previously rejected and which she continues to deny.

On Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published an exclusive report under the headline “A Secret FBI Bust Nabbed an Alleged Drug Lord — and Rocked Relations With Mexico.”

Ryan Wedding mug shot
Did accused drug trafficker Ryan Wedding turn himself into the U.S. Embassy, or was he arrested as part of a “high-risk operation”? The Mexican and U.S. government can’t agree. (U.S. Embassy)

“Ryan Wedding was on the run,” the report begins.

“Mexican security forces were closing in on the 44-year-old Canadian — a snowboarder who once competed for Canada in the Olympics but has since landed on America’s most-wanted list for allegedly running a vast cocaine-trafficking network — said Mexican and U.S. officials familiar with the operation,” it continues.

“Long protected by Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, Wedding suddenly had no options. By the time security forces caught up with him in Mexico last week, the officials said, members of the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team [HRT] were also involved.”

Citing “some of the officials it spoke to,” the WSJ wrote that “law-enforcement officials made contact with Wedding — presumed to be armed and dangerous — and, in an intense negotiation, reminded him that his associates had been captured and millions of dollars of his assets had been seized.”

“… Eventually, said his lawyer, Anthony Colombo, FBI agents handcuffed Wedding, who was then transported to California and pleaded not guilty in federal court to 17 felony charges, including murder,” the report states.

The WSJ journal didn’t specify whether it was U.S. law enforcement officials, Mexican law enforcement officials or officials from both countries who “made contact with Wedding.”

Nor did it say where FBI agents allegedly handcuffed Wedding.

The publication of the WSJ’s report came six days after FBI director Kash Patel wrote on social media that the arrest of Wedding was the result of “a zero-margin, high-risk operation.”

“Our FBI HRT teams executed with precision, discipline, and total professionalism alongside our Mexican partners to bring Ryan James Wedding back to face justice,” Patel, who was in Mexico at the time of the arrest, wrote on X.

For her part, Sheinbaum says that Wedding turned himself in at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City and has repeatedly denied that there was a joint operation to detain the suspect. She conceded on Tuesday that her government didn’t know “the details” of the alleged surrender, explaining that “what we do know is what the U.S. authorities here told the authorities of Mexico.”

In contrast to Sheinbaum’s denial of a joint operation, the WSJ’s report indicates that there was indeed collaboration between U.S. and Mexican authorities on an operation to capture Wedding.

“The FBI’s involvement in the Jan. 22 operation was intended to be a closely guarded secret,” a U.S. official said. Mexico’s laws ban foreign agents from being physically present in law-enforcement operations on its soil and taking part in detentions or raids. The nationalist ruling party in Mexico is particularly sensitive to foreign interference,” states the newspaper’s report.

It also notes that “Colombo, Wedding’s attorney, has disputed Sheinbaum’s version of events, saying that it isn’t true that Wedding turned himself in at the embassy and that U.S. agents absolutely were involved.”

In addition, the WSJ, citing U.S. officials, wrote that Patel, while in Mexico City, was “quietly working with Mexican partners throughout the operation to arrest Wedding.”

Citing “some of the Mexican and U.S. officials” it spoke to, the newspaper also wrote that “the FBI is now mapping out more targets across Mexico and aiming to do joint operations with Mexican forces against top drug-trafficking targets.”

Sheinbaum: WSJ report ‘clearly states what we’ve been saying’

At her Thursday morning press conference, Sheinbaum was asked whether she and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed “the issue of the FBI and the capture of the ex-athlete” in the telephone conversation they had earlier in the day.

“We didn’t discuss the issue,” she responded.

A reporter then mentioned to the president that the WSJ published a report affirming that there was a U.S. “intervention” and that the intention was to keep the United States’ involvement in the operation to capture Wedding a secret.

“If you read the article from the Wall Street [Journal] carefully, it clearly states that Mexico, the security cabinet, … seized some of his assets,” Sheinbaum said referring to the WSJ’s recognition that “in December, Mexican security forces raided a warehouse full of professional-racing motorcycles allegedly owned by Wedding and worth an estimated $40 million.”

President Sheinbaum gestures at a press conference
Sheinbaum continued to deny the existence of a joint operation to arrest Canadian Ryan Wedding, an accused drug trafficker whose arrest has raised questions about whether U.S. agents have been operating illegally in Mexico. (Daniel Augusto / Cuartoscuro.com)

She subsequently said that while the headline says “one thing,” the “first paragraph” of the report “clearly states … what we have been saying.”

“It was a joint operation then?” the reporter asked. “The action [by FBI agents] was allowed [or was it] only Mexicans?” she probed.

“No, let’s see,” responded Sheinbaum.

“This is very important for everyone and also for the people of Mexico: We’re never going to accept joint operations with the United States, or with federal, state or municipal forces of the United States, in our territory,” she said.

“We collaborate, they give us information, we give them information, but the operations in our territory are carried out by Mexican forces. That has to be made very clear,” Sheinbaum said.

“In the article from The Wall Street [Journal] it is very clear how the process occurred,” she said, appearing to accept the content of the report even though it explicitly states that the FBI was involved in the operation to capture Wedding, something the president denies.

“So, I repeat: I am not going to engage in further discussion with the head of the FBI, but it must be made very clear that we do not accept joint operations,” Sheinbaum continued.

To support her government’s assertion that Wedding handed himself in at the U.S. Embassy, the president, on repeated occasions, has pointed to a statement issued by U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ron Johnson. She has emphasized that the statement refers to “the surrender of Ryan Wedding,” but hasn’t focused on the fact that it says that said surrender “was a direct result of pressure applied by Mexican and U.S. law enforcement working in close coordination and cooperation.”

Incongruent versions of events 

The WSJ exclusive was widely covered by the Mexican media, with various outlets reporting that it contradicted the Mexican government’s claim that Wedding turned himself in at the U.S. Embassy.

Therefore, Sheinbaum’s assertion that the WSJ report “clearly states” what her government has been saying does not appear to be logical.

Indeed, she appears to have contradicted herself by saying: “In the article from The Wall Street [Journal] it is very clear how the process occurred.”

Vicente Gálvez, a television and print journalist, wrote on social media on Thursday morning that it appeared that Sheinbaum didn’t read the WSJ report carefully or didn’t read “beyond the first paragraph because far from supporting her version [of events], it cites U.S. sources that claim that the joint operation had to be kept secret.”

The circumstances of the arrest of Wedding are of great interest as U.S. agents in Mexico are legally barred from making arrests, and Sheinbaum has said on repeated occasions that her government will not accept any kind of intervention or unilateral action by U.S. forces in Mexican territory.

The circumstances of the arrest remain murky a week after it occurred. With what appeared to be a simultaneous endorsement and rejection of the WSJ report, Sheinbaum hasn’t made things any clearer.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

Grupo Modelo’s plan to make Mexico the World Cup’s best host country: Beer everywhere

By
MND Staff
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corona beer
Grupo Modelo, Mexico's top beermaker and producer of the worldwide favorite Corona, plans to go all-in on riding the World Cup demand for beer, flooding the market with its products not only at the stadiums where the games will be played, but at fan fests and public viewings as well. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro.com)

The nation’s top brewer is betting that beer — traditional cerveza as well as the increasingly popular non-alcoholic variety — will help make Mexico the best host country of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Grupo Modelo has revealed an aggressive plan to put its flagship brands in stadiums, fan zones, corner stores and restaurants across Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.

A can of Corona Cero alcohol-free beer
A lesson learned at the last World Cup, when Qatar imposed an in-stadium prohibition, is that non-alcoholic beer has become popular. Said the company’s sponsorship director, “When there’s soccer, there’s beer, and it doesn’t necessarily have to have alcohol.” (Secretaría de Desarollo Económico Oaxaca)

“We have very high expectations of delivering the best experience ever seen at a World Cup, and we think that Mexico will clearly be the best of the three venues,” Alejandro Gershberg, Grupo Modelo’s sponsorship director, told Sports Illustrated México.

The 48-team men’s soccer tournament in Mexico, the United States and Canada will open June 11 at Mexico City’s iconic Estadio Azteca, which has sold naming rights to Banorte in a sponsorship deal.

And although Mexico will host just 13 of the record 104 matches, authorities expect more than 800,000 fans in stadiums and more than 6 million people at fan fests and public viewing areas nationwide — plus 5.5 million foreign visitors between May and July.

Backed by global giant AB InBev, Grupo Modelo controls some of Mexico’s best-known beers, including Corona, Pacífico, Negra Modelo and Modelo Especial, along with primarily domestic labels Victoria and León.

Corona is Mexico’s best-selling beer and among the world’s top five most-consumed beers.

In 2023, Modelo Especial moved past Bud Light as the top-selling beer in the U.S., remaining No. 1 by dollar sales since then, though Michelob Ultra has edged ahead on volume.

According to industry sources, Mexican beer accounts for roughly 80% of all beer imported into the U.S. in recent years. Also, Mexico accounts for about 30-36% of the world’s beer exports, which by volume surpasses that of any other country by more than double.

Mexico City-based Modelo employs nearly 30,000 workers at 10 breweries nationwide and also operates bottle-making and malt-processing plants.

The 2022 Qatar World Cup provided an unexpected dress rehearsal for Modelo’s World Cup strategy.

Less than two days before kickoff, FIFA banned alcohol sales inside Qatar’s eight host stadiums, forcing AB InBev to pivot to Budweiser Zero, its non-alcoholic variant, while limiting full-strength beer to fan fests and other approved sites.

Gershberg said that shift “helped demonstrate that when there’s soccer, there’s beer, and it doesn’t necessarily have to have alcohol,” opening the door for wider adoption of products such as Budweiser Zero and Corona Cero.

Non-alcoholic beer has since become one of the industry’s fastest-growing segments. NielsenIQ data cited by Gershberg show no-alcohol beer sales rising at an annual rate of 30% over the past five years, 15 times faster than traditional beer.

The World Cup is also feeding into a broader consumption boom.

The Mexican Franchise Association projects 6% growth in the franchise sector in 2026, driven partly by World Cup-related spending and local promotions (pop-ups, viewing parties, special menu offerings, delivery promos, etc.) tied to the World Cup.

Restaurant leaders forecast match-day sales spikes of up to 15% in the host markets.

With reports from Sports Illustrated México and Mexico Business News

Mexico’s biggest retailer turns to a viral videogame to find tech talent

By
MND Staff
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The entrance to a Walmart store
Forget resumés and job applications — to get a programming job at Walmart México, candidates just need a gaming account. (Walmart México)

Walmart México is recruiting software developers through the video game Fortnite, marking what the company says is the first time a Latin American employer has used the gaming platform for hiring.

Fortnite, a free-to-play online game with more than 400 million registered users worldwide, has become a cultural phenomenon since its 2017 launch, particularly among younger adults who now make up a significant portion of the tech workforce.

A Fortnite avatar in a Walmart custom environment
Candidates can Walmart’s custom environment within the online game Fortnite to participate in coding challenges. (Walmart México)

The retailer created a custom environment within Fortnite — essentially a mini-game that players can access using a special code — where job candidates complete coding challenges in Java, iOS and Android. The virtual recruitment tool will remain active through 2027.

The move reflects Mexico’s growing prominence in gaming and technology sectors. Mexico ranked as the second-largest gaming market by revenue in Latin America in 2025, according to market research firm Statista.

It also signals Walmart’s shifting identity in Mexico from traditional retailer to technology employer. The company relocated its IT hub from India to Mexico in 2025, a decision that positioned the country as a focal point for the retailer’s worldwide technology development.

Juan Carlos Alarcón, chief people officer at Walmart México, said the company views gaming skills as transferable to workplace collaboration.

“Imagine, if you can coordinate a squadron in Fortnite, you can probably lead a development team at Walmart,” Alarcón said. “This [gaming environment] allows us to identify talent based on real competencies.”

The recruitment initiative targets Mexico’s estimated 72 million gamers, though the company did not specify how many technology positions it aims to fill through the platform. Candidates who complete the in-game challenges receive a code to apply through the company’s Discord server or website.

The strategy comes as Mexican retailers increasingly compete for technology talent. Walmart has marketed itself as the third-best employer for tech workers outside the traditional software industry, though the organization behind that ranking was not specified in the company’s announcement.

Mexico News Daily

Canadian mining company confirms mass kidnapping of employees in Concordia, Sinaloa

By
MND Staff
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Tunnel at Panuco mine
The victims of the Panuco mine mass kidnapping include engineers, at least one geologist, security guards and administrative staff. Little has emerged about the perpetrators, but it's known that the Sinalioa Cartel has long targeted mining operations in the mountains of the state of Sinaloa. (Vizsla Silver)

A Canadian mining company confirmed that 10 employees were kidnapped from one of its project sites in the northern state of Sinaloa last week and announced that it had suspended work on its flagship Panuco silver-gold venture located nearby. 

The incident is under investigation, but information remains limited, according to a statement released by Vizsla Silver mining company late Wednesday.

map of Panuco mining area
The abducted miners worked with Vizsla-Silver’s highly touted Panuca gold-silver project, and were taken from their housing in nearby Concordia. (Vizsla-Silver)

“Local authorities have been notified, and the Company’s crisis management and security response teams are actively engaged. The Company’s immediate priority is the safety and wellbeing of the individuals involved,” the statement said.

The Sinaloa state Attorney General’s Office also issued a statement saying it has opened an investigation into the kidnappings after receiving a report “of the disappearance of 10 individuals on January 24 in a 911 call from a company representative.”

Relatives of the missing have denounced a lack of communication from the company, as well as an absence of institutional support.

El Universal newspaper reported that the family of one of the missing recounted in a social media post that the events occurred around 6:00 a.m. on January 23.

According to this post, “armed individuals entered the La Clementina housing development in Concordia, where the company housed the workers because it was considered a safe area, and took them away without any information about their whereabouts to this day.”

Among the missing are engineers, a geologist, security guards and administrative staff. Seven of the missing are reportedly from Hermosillo, Sonora, and one is from the state of Chihuahua.

State authorities have launched search operations in conjunction with federal authorities, including the military. State authorities also executed a search warrant on Tuesday as part of the investigation, though no additional details were shared.

The Association of Mining, Metallurgical and Geological Engineers of Mexico (AIMMGM) issued a statement expressing “deep concern over the illegal detention of at least 10 professionals from the mining industry,” urging the authorities to “guarantee their safe return.”

The Concordia site is located near Vizsla Silver’s Panuco venture, a predominantly silver-gold mine with zinc and lead resources that is considered to be an emerging high-grade discovery project.

Located near the city of Mazatlán, Panuco hosts the world’s largest undeveloped, high‑grade silver resource. It is believed to hold 12.8 million proven and probable tonnes grading 2.01 grams of gold per tonne and 249 grams of silver per tonne.

Vizsla Silver, which had been expanding its land position in western Mexico along the highly prospective Sinaloa Silver Belt, projected a mine life of 9.4 years for Panuco and planned to begin production there in the second half of 2027.

The Toronto-based weekly trade journal The Northern Miner said Vizsla Silver shares — which had tripled over the past year — plunged 15% on Thursday morning in Toronto, slashing the company’s market value to about US $2 billion. 

With reports from El Universal, CBC, The Northern Miner and NS Energy

Mexico, US agree to begin formal USMCA trade talks. Where does that leave Canada?

By
MND Staff
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Marcelo Ebrard, Jamieson Greer and Howard Lutnick stand next to an American flag
Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard shared news of the agreement after meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, left, before meeting with his U.S. counterpart, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, right. Pictured: The three trade officials pose for a photo after a February 2025 meeting. (Marcelo Ebrard/X)

Mexico and the United States have agreed to begin formal discussions as part of the review of the USMCA free trade pact, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said Wednesday.

The announcement came after U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met with Mexico’s Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard in Washington, D.C.

Flags of United States, Mexico, Canada flying together, concept of new NAFTA agreement now known as USMCA in the U.S., CUSMA in Canada or T-MEC in Mexico.
The USMCA free trade deal, which replaced NAFTA starting in 2020, is due for a review and possible update this year. (Shutterstock)

The USTR said the two officials met to “discuss bilateral trade relations and the upcoming USMCA Joint Review,” which Mexico, the United States and Canada must complete this year.

“Both sides recognized substantial progress in recent months and agreed to continue intensive engagement to address non-tariff barriers,” the USTR said.

“In addition, they agreed to begin formal discussions on possible structural and strategic reforms in the context of the first USMCA Joint Review, including stronger rules of origin for key industrial goods, enhanced collaboration on critical minerals, and increased external trade policy alignment to defend workers and producers in the United States and Mexico and to combat the relentless dumping of manufactured goods in our region.”

The USTR didn’t specify when the formal discussions would begin, nor did it say whether Canada would be involved in the talks.

Greer said late last year that negotiations during the USMCA review process would “probably” be more bilateral than trilateral.

His meeting with Ebrard came two weeks after Trump asserted that the USMCA provides “no real advantage” to the United States and is “irrelevant” to him.

“I think they want … [the USMCA], I don’t really care about it,” said Trump, who claimed that the United States doesn’t need goods from Mexico or Canada.

In October, Greer accused Mexico of failing to comply with the USMCA in a range of areas.

The U.S. trade representative has also said, per Reuters, that “the pact is not equipped to deal with surges of exports and investment from non-market economies such as China into the region.”

At the start of January, Mexico imposed new and higher tariffs on imports from China and other countries with which it doesn’t have trade agreements, whereas Canada — which now sees the U.S. as a less trustworthy partner — has decided to ease its duties on certain Chinese products. It remains to be seen how the two countries’ decisions will affect the USMCA review, but Trump has threatened to impose higher tariffs on Canada if it makes a broader trade deal with China.

Opinion: Mexico could lose out as Canada risks USMCA with bet on ‘new world order’

The U.S. president has railed against the United States’ trade deficits with Mexico and Canada, and accused Mexico of being a backdoor for Chinese goods bound for the U.S.

Trump has also criticized Mexico and Canada for not doing enough to combat the flow of drugs to the United States. Last March, he imposed 25% tariffs on non-USMCA compliant goods from both countries.

As Mexico seeks tariff relief and to safeguard its trade relationship with the United States, Mexican officials have engaged in ongoing trade talks with the U.S. officials during the entirety of the second Trump administration.

Ebrard has made frequent trips to Washington, D.C., and after his meeting with Greer on Wednesday struck an upbeat tone.

“We had a very good conversation with his team,” he said in a video message.

“… We spoke about … the next steps for the free trade agreement between our countries,” he said.

“As you know, it has to be reviewed this year. We’ve already made progress on many issues so that the review is carried out as quickly as possible and goes as well as possible,” Ebrard said.

He said that he spoke about tariffs with Greer, about “how the auto industry is evolving,” and about other issues related to trade between Mexico and the United States.

The economy minister also said they spoke about “critical minerals and the security of supply chains.”

“… I think it was a very good meeting to start the year,” said Ebrard, who later on Wednesday discussed trade and investment with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.

In addition to imposing tariffs on non-USMCA compliant goods, the Trump administration last year imposed duties on a range of other imports from Mexico including steel, aluminum and light and heavy vehicles. Nevertheless, the majority of Mexican goods can still be shipped duty-free to the U.S., which is easily Mexico’s largest trade partner.

Despite Trump’s remarks about the USMCA, President Claudia Sheinbaum remains confident that the trilateral pact will endure.

Even if Mexico, the United States and Canada don’t agree to extend the USMCA during the upcoming review process, it would not be terminated until 2036.

The agreement was negotiated during Trump’s first term as president and superseded NAFTA in 2020. It governs North American trade worth around US $2 trillion per year.

With reports from La Jornada and Reuters 

British neobank Revolut launches banking operations in Mexico with a special perk for US-Mexico transfers

By
MND Staff
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A hand holds a Revolut credit card next to a payment terminal
With its new Mexican banking permit, Revolut aims to attract 2 million clients across the country by the end of 2026. (Revolut)

British neobank Revolut has started full banking operations in Mexico, introducing a novelty service for the Mexican market: free remittances from and to the United States.

“Today is a very important day,” Revolut’s CEO in Mexico Juan Miguel Guerra Dávila said on a post in his social media channels. “Revolut is now live, helping Mexicans get more out of their money.”

Founded in 2015 in London as an app for travelers, Revolut now operates as a digital bank in 40 countries. In Mexico, it seeks to reduce the cost of remittances and add over 20 million new users to the financial system — a goal supported by the United Kingdom’s ambassador to Mexico Susannah Goshko.

“[Revolut’s] advance is aligned with the Plan México to close gaps, accelerate digitalization and strengthen the household economy,” Goshko said at a press conference.

Revolut began offering services to select users in Mexico in December under its new banking license, as part of beta phase testing.

Now available to the general public, the license allows Revolut to offer a total of 11 products directly through its app, including debit and credit cards, international transfers and joint accounts for couples.

But Revolut’s most anticipated service is free remittances. According to Guerra, this service will potentially return US $3 billion a year to its clients.

“If we receive US $60 billion a year from our fellow citizens [in the U.S.] and the average cost of the operation is 5%, and we are able to migrate all of that to Revolut and move it for free and instantly, we would be returning US $3 billion a year to the people who need it most in the country,” Guerra stated.

In addition to this service, Guerra said they’ll be releasing new features to the app every two weeks, including accounts for children “very soon.”

The bank aims to reach some 2 million customers across the country in their first year of operations. Globally, they have 70 million.

Guerra described Mexico as a gateway to the rest of Latin America, saying as it will serve as a platform to test user experiences in the region.

To date, Revolut has invested some US $100 million in Mexico, and Guerra anticipated they’ll invest another US $100 million in the next year.

With reports from La Jornada, GBM and El Universal

The Cristero War in Mexico: The persecution that almost got my great-grandfather killed

By
MND Staff
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Catholic demonstration in Mexico City during the Cristero War.
Catholic demonstration in Mexico City during the Cristero War. (INAH)

I’ve always been fascinated by a period of our history that was never taught in school, yet I grew up hearing about it from my maternal grandmother. This was an armed conflict that was buried in the collective memory of Mexicans for decades, until a young French historian named Jean Meyer arrived in the country, unearthed it from our dusty past, and gave it a name: La Guerra Cristera (The Cristero War). 

The scene that piqued my interest in the Cristero War was my grandmother’s earliest memory, as she would recount it. She was four or five years old, living in a town called Tenamaxtlán, 135 kilometers south of Guadalajara, Jalisco. Her memory consisted of seeing two men hanging from a telegraph post outside her home, their faces covered, as she and her mother left for the market. 

Publicly hanged men Cristero War
Men were publicly hanged from telephone posts during the Cristero War. (Public Domain)

This scene took place sometime in 1926, just as the persecution of Catholics by President Plutarco Elías Calles made it commonplace to spot men hanging from telegraph posts and trees across several states in western Mexico. 

That memory of hers happened a year before her father — my great-grandfather — managed to miraculously escape from his execution following his refusal to store government weapons in his cellars. After he escaped, his wife and two daughters — my grandmother included — followed. For months, they were forced to hide in Ameca, a town closer to Guadalajara, until it was safe to go back. 

This dramatic story always stayed with me. And as we enter the war’s 100th anniversary, I wanted to take a moment to remember the Cristero War. 

Why did the government persecute Catholics?

The persecution of Catholics by Mexico’s Federal Government came as a result of a growing clash between a revolutionary state seeking to consolidate its power — Mexico’s Revolution had just ended a few years back — and a Catholic Church that still had enormous social, cultural and political influence. Calles represented a political movement that wasn’t exclusive to Mexico, in which leaders believed that Catholicism is incompatible with the State, as a Catholic’s first loyalty is to Rome.

Thus, in June 1926, Calles issued a law that would become known as “Ley Calles,” establishing strict rules against the Catholic Church. It limited the number of priests across the country, required them to register with the Ministry of the Interior and prohibited them from criticizing the government. It also expelled all foreign priests from Mexico, ordered the closing of religious schools and restricted worship.

With the Pope’s blessing, the Mexican Episcopate suspended public worship a month after the law came into effect, in a move to highlight the cancellation of religious freedom in Mexico.

Cristero generals in Michoacán
Cristero generals gathered in Michoacán. (INAH)

Following the Church’s decision, the government escalated its response, declaring all Catholic churches to be national property and expelling all priests from the country.

Mexicans perceived the suspension of worship not as a decision made by the Catholic Church, but by the government, further intensifying the crackdown and giving rise to the Cristero War. 

The Cristeros and the end of the war

During the three years that worship was restricted in Mexico (1926-1929), people risked their lives to celebrate private religious services. Couples would marry at midnight at hidden rooms of haciendas, or baptize their children in caves. Meanwhile, faithful catholics took to the arms to resist the application of the Calles Law. 

The Cristero battalions were mostly made up of peasants with no military training from Jalisco, Guanajuato, Colima, Nayarit and Michoacán. However, any Catholic who rose up in defense of their Church belonged to the movement, regardless of social class, gender or age.

Officials would arrest and execute any priest or person who was caught participating in an underground religious service, or any person who was suspected of being a Cristero. 

The armed conflict claimed the lives of over 200,000 people. 

The war and its legacy

Dwight Morrow
U.S. ambassador to Mexico Dwight Morrow (left) played a key role in ending the Cristero War. Here he is with Archbishop Leopoldo Ruiz y Flores and Bishop (later Archbishop) Pascual Díaz y Barreto. (INAH)

Experts agree that neither the bishops nor the Calles government imagined the social impact that the closure of churches in the country would represent and the uncertainty of not knowing if they could continue to freely practice their faith. 

Finally, on June 21, 1929, the war officially ended in an act that came to be known as Los Arreglos (The Arrangement). These were agreements between the government and the Catholic Church to end the conflict, negotiated by U.S. ambassador Dwight Morrow.

These arrangements were controversial, with many catholics considering them a humiliation to their claims. According to Jean Meyer, some Cristeros continued fighting until the last ones surrendered following the elections of 1940.

In honor of those who died fighting for their faith, in 2007 the Catholic Church inaugurated the Sanctuary of the Martyrs of Christ the King, at the top of the El Tesoro Hill in Guadalajara. With a capacity for 12,000 people in the main assembly hall and 50,000 in the atrium and front plaza, this is the largest sanctuary in Latin America. 

Gabriela Solis is a Mexican lawyer turned full-time writer. She was born and raised in Guadalajara and covers business, culture, lifestyle and travel for Mexico News Daily. You can follow her lifestyle blog Dunas y Palmeras.

Celebrating the 2nd MANCHA Arts Festival in Zipolite

By
Alan Chazaro
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MANCHA Arts Festival
The upcoming MANCHA Arts Festival should help to establish Zipolite's reputation for something besides nudity. (Instagram)

Zipolite — the famed nudist beach along the Oaxacan Riviera known for its naked festivals, yoga, volleyball matches and more — is now making a serious effort to expand its offerings to another kind of open expression: the fine arts. 

Leading this charge is MANCHA Arts Festival, which was publicly inaugurated in 2023 by a series of local artists and organizers who aimed to turn Zipolite into a veritable art destination. 

Zipolite nude beach Oaxaca
Zipolite in Oaxaca is famed as Mexico’s only legal nude beach. (Jorge Maldonado Campos/YouTube)

A spotlight on Zipolite’s ‘orange economy’

The idea sprouted in 2022 behind the leadership of Gallery 175 Uno Siete Cinco, an art showroom and workshop that opened six years ago behind the vision of Cheram Morales, a multidisciplinary artist originally from Tijuana who has dedicated himself to fostering a community of creative radicals on Mexico’s Pacific coast, where he has lived for the past five years. 

With MANCHA is the Spanish word for “stain” or “spot,” but is also term fisherman call the mark of water when a school of fish is passing by — Morales and the gallery are hoping to leave their mark, so to speak, on the regional art scene and economy with the area’s largest arts festival of its kind.

“Zipolite is a magical paradise, and it has been since the hippie days (of the 1960s). It’s considered the only legally nude beach in all of Mexico, and that has helped to turn the region into a place that creative and open-minded people enjoy. Naturally, there is lots of liberty in that,” says Morales. “It’s a port for artists, and now we’re trying to organize and unite the different areas of creativity to turn it into something bigger. We want to make it a more notable art region.”

On Feb. 5, the four-day festival will kick off by unveiling 30 artists (selected from a free, open-call submission process in December and January). The festival will take place along Playa Zipolite, a 2-km stretch where artist-vendors will be showcasing a range of their artwork — from acrylic paintings and ceramics to fabrics and weavings. 

Art, live music and regional gastronomy

Aside from the visual arts, MANCHA will feature live musicians, regional gastronomy and family-friendly workshops geared toward engaging children and teenagers. It’ll all be free and open to the public, with an emphasis on bolstering Zipolite’s “orange economy” — that is, the creative, cultural and intellectual sectors of the economy. 

When the festival started out three years ago, it only featured six artists and 11 activities scattered throughout the city. This time around, they’ve ballooned to nearly five times the participants and offerings, partnering with restaurants, hotels, the local tourism board and various artists from around the country — and the world — to deliver the second annual edition after a three-year hiatus.

The festival was originally intended to occur biannually, but due to logistics, planning and strategically waiting for Zipolite’s high season for tourism, MANCHA hasn’t occurred again — until now.

‘Everyone is welcome’

Guest artists will be arriving from near and far, including Oaxaqueña Viviana Lorenzo, who will be opening this year’s festival with her inaugural exhibition. 

Zurdo Valdez, an artist from Tecate, Baja California, will be performing live art in real time throughout the festival, a four-day project in which he will be painting interactively for an audience. There will also be a group of traditional artisans from nearby Pinotepa, a town known for its Oaxacan textiles.

“The idea behind bringing artists from (all over) was very intentional,” Morales says. “It’s meant to blur the lines between territories and highlight Mexico as one singular people, rather than thinking about the northern or southern regions as vastly different. 

“Our message is clear: Everyone is welcome at this beach; there are no differences here. That’s the spirit of MANCHA.”

Zipolite’s storied history

It’s a liberal philosophy that builds on Zipolite’s storied reputation as Mexico’s earliest nudist getaway. Before the 1960s, the area was a mostly remote area of fishermen and Indigenous locals. In the following decades, travelers began to arrive in search of adventure and freedom of expression, which informally led to the town’s modern development. Spots like Lola’s (opened in 1968) and Shambala (in the early 1970s) set the tone for what was to come in future years.

Playa Zipolite
Playa Zipolite has been famous since the 1960s for its beauty, and that of its freewheeling visitors. (Mexico Turismo)

In those early days, Morales estimates, it would have taken up to 12 hours to reach the coast, a journey through vegetation and mountainous terrain, but groups of hippies arrived to revel in their isolation. As word of the clothing-optional beach began to spread, Zipolite flourished into a slow-paced, laid-back haven for a growing collective of free-spirited wanderers, marked by the opening of local institutions such as Lo Cósmico — a group of rustic hut lodges overlooking the beach that opened in 1984. 

In the 1990s, the region was hit by multiple hurricanes, and Zipolite endured a large fire in 2001 that wiped out many of the palm-thatched palapas and rudimentary cabins. Nevertheless, the town rebuilt and even grew. 

Around that time, Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón’s cult film, “Y tu mamá también,” was released — a movie largely centered on travel and sexual exploration. Starring the young duo of Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna, one of the closing scenes takes place at Playa Zipolite, which further reinvigorated the beach’s popularity and lore. Nowadays, emblematic hotels and eateries like El Alquimista, Naked, Tap Room La Deliria and Mezcaleria Gota Gorda continue to increase the destination’s appeal. 

Art as a tool for community engagement

MANCHA is the cherry on top: The festival is a culmination of ongoing grassroots efforts and community engagement through art.

“Art is a tool,” says Morales. “It’s not only about the gallery. Artists like Mario Calavera have been doing work in the community for years. There are lots of seeds that have been planted through art here. We have been assessing and strengthening it all over time, looking at it closely and improving it to make it more visible and professional.”

“We are a collective and community-minded group,” he adds. “That kind of involvement allows people to think about art differently. It opens dialogue and exchange to improve things between tourists and locals. 

MANCHA Arts Festival Zipolite
The MANCHA Arts Festival is one of the most significant on Mexico’s Pacific Coast. (Instagram)

“There are arts festivals in the central part of Mexico, but not many like this along the coast.”

The party will last until Feb. 8.

To find out more about events at the festival, follow its Instagram page.

Alan Chazaro is the author of “This Is Not a Frank Ocean Cover Album,” “Piñata Theory” and “Notes From the Eastern Span of the Bay Bridge” (Ghost City Press, 2021). He is a graduate of June Jordan’s Poetry for the People program at UC Berkeley and a former Lawrence Ferlinghetti Fellow at the University of San Francisco. His writing can be found in GQ, NPR, The Guardian, L.A. Times and more. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, he is currently based in Veracruz.

 

Sheinbaum celebrates record exports in 2025: Wednesday’s mañanera recapped

By
MND Staff
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Sheinbaum Jan. 28, 2026
Sheinbaum acknowledged on Wednesday that the value of Mexico's exports in 2025 reached a record high — US $664.8 billion, according to preliminary data from the national statistics agency INEGI. (Saúl López/Presidencia)

At her Wednesday morning press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum commented on the latest data on exports and gave reporters an insight into the federal government’s daily security meetings.

She also noted that Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard was in Washington D.C. for meetings with U.S. officials.

Here is a recap of the president’s Jan. 28 mañanera.

Sheinbaum celebrates record exports and US $2.4B trade surplus 

Sheinbaum acknowledged that the value of Mexico’s exports in 2025 reached a record high — US $664.8 billion, according to preliminary data from the national statistics agency INEGI.

She also noted that Mexico recorded a trade surplus in 2025, the first in five years.

Mexico’s 2025 exports hit record high, creating first trade surplus in 4 years

“We exported more than we imported, which is always good for the economy,” Sheinbaum said.

She noted that auto sector exports declined last year, but asserted that it was more to do with a reduction of demand in the United States than the tariffs U.S. President Donald Trump imposed on vehicles made in Mexico.

Sheinbaum highlighted that exports from certain other sectors, including electronics, increased “significantly.”

“This has to do not only with the trade agreement [the USMCA], but also with Mexico’s competitive advantages over other countries, including its proximity [to the United States],” she said.

INEGI’s data shows that the value of manufacturing exports increased 9.8% last year.

Excluding the auto sector, whose exports declined 4.2%, the manufacturing sector’s export revenue increased 17.3%.

Inside the government’s daily security meetings

Sheinbaum told reporters that her government’s security meetings take place every weekday from 6 a.m. to 7.20 a.m., after which the president faces the press for her mañanera.

She said the meetings begin with a report from Security Minister Omar García Harfuch, who speaks about the “most important” happenings and arrests that occurred the previous day as well as “any special cases.”

Among the other attendees are the heads of the Army, the Navy and the National Guard, and the federal interior minister.

After the update from García Harfuch, Sheinbaum said that she and her security cabinet colleagues look at a crime data “dashboard,” which shows statistics for the whole country as well as by state and municipality.

Based on the data, “we take some decisions,” the president said.

“And then a particular issue is discussed. For example, when the mayor of Mexico City comes, we consider issues in Mexico City,” she said, adding that when she and her colleagues are outside the capital, the security meetings focus on security issues in the state where they are located.

Sheinbaum also said that the new federal Attorney General, Ernestina Godoy, comes to the security meetings once a week to discuss “issues of coordination” between the federal government and the Federal Attorney General’s Office.

“That’s what the security meetings are all about,” she said before recalling that Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez also gives a daily report on problems “related to governability” in Mexico, which also includes information on upcoming protests and other “specific issues.”

Ebrard in Washington 

Sheinbaum briefly noted that Marcelo Ebrard was in Washington D.C., where on Wednesday he met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.

After the meeting between Ebrard and Greer, the Office of the United States Trade Representative said in a statement that “both sides recognized substantial progress in recent months” in discussions on trade relations and the upcoming USMCA review, and “agreed to continue intensive engagement to address non-tariff barriers.”

“In addition, they agreed to begin formal discussions on possible structural and strategic reforms in the context of the first USMCA Joint Review, including stronger rules of origin for key industrial goods, enhanced collaboration on critical minerals, and increased external trade policy alignment to defend workers and producers in the United States and Mexico and to combat the relentless dumping of manufactured goods in our region.”

The meeting between Ebrard and Greer came two weeks after Trump asserted that the USMCA provides “no real advantage” to the United States and is “irrelevant” to him.

“I think they want … [the USMCA], I don’t really care about it,” said Trump, who claimed that the United States doesn’t need goods from Mexico or Canada.

In October, Greer accused Mexico of failing to comply with the USMCA in a range of areas.

In a video message posted to social media on Wednesday afternoon, Ebrard said he had a “very good” conversation with Greer’s “team.”

“We spoke about … the next steps for the free trade agreement between our countries,” he said.

“As you know, it has to be reviewed this year. We’ve already made progress on many issues so that the review is carried out as quickly as possible and goes as well as possible,” Ebrard said.

He said that he spoke about tariffs with Greer, about “how the auto industry is evolving,” and about other issues related to trade between Mexico and the United States.

Ebrard also said they spoke about “critical minerals and the security of supply chains.”

The Trump administration has imposed tariffs on a range of imports from Mexico including steel, aluminum and light and heavy vehicles, significantly undermining the USMCA.

Later on Wednesday, Ebrard said on social media that he spoke to Lutnick about “trade and investment between both countries.”

He said his meeting with the commerce secretary was “positive and cordial,” and declared that “the year is starting off well in that field.”

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

Which Mexican region is most competitive? New index has the answer

By
MND Staff
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Aerial view of the Tangamanga urban park in the city of San Luis Potosí
Mexico's northeast region — home to San Luis Potosí (pictured here), Monterrey and Torreón — ranked first in attracting investment, attracting talent and retaining talent. (Shutterstock)

Mexico’s northeast — made up of the states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí and Tamaulipas — is the country’s most competitive region, according to the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness (IMCO).

On Monday, IMCO, a Mexico City-based think tank, published its first Regional Competitiveness Index (ICR), which ranks six regions of Mexico based on their capacity to attract and retain investment and attract and retain talent.

In a statement, IMCO said that the index “understands competitiveness as a regional phenomenon, where the performance of one state influences its neighbors.”

“… The index results confirm that competitiveness is not an isolated phenomenon: advances — or setbacks — in one entity can have spillover effects on its neighbors.”

IMCO used a range of data to evaluate the six regions’ performance on 40 variables across four sub-indexes: attraction of investment, attraction of talent, retention of investment and retention of talent. It consequently determined that Mexico’s most competitive region is the northeast, followed by the northwest.

The Bajío region ranks third, followed by central Mexico, the Maya region and the Isthmus region.

IMCO’s publication of its inaugural ICR in early 2026 comes after economic growth in Mexico slowed significantly in 2025.

The index serves as additional evidence that economic and social development is significantly more advanced in northern Mexico than in the country’s south. The previous federal government, and the current one, have been seeking to remedy that situation, including by building large-scale infrastructure projects in southern and southeastern Mexico, such as the Maya Train railroad and the Olmeca Refinery on the Tabasco coast.

However, IMCO’s ICR and other indicators, such as data on poverty reduction across Mexico, show that there is plenty of work still to be done.

1. The northeast

The northeast ranked first among the six regions in three of the four sub-indexes, taking the top spot in attraction of investment; attraction of talent; and retention of talent.

Its ICR score was 68.18 out of 100, which equates to “high competitiveness,” according to IMCO.

“This performance reflects an integrated ecosystem, where [the northeast region’s] infrastructure, labor market, operational certainty, and productivity reinforce each other and generate a competitive environment,” IMCO said.

Valeria Moy, the think tank’s director, said that the states of the northeast don’t compete with each other or function in an “isolated” way, but rather collaborate.

She said that the northeast region’s ranking on the ICR positions it as “the most attractive [region] for the establishment, operation, and expansion of companies,” and the most attractive region for “qualified human capital.”

According to IMCO’s assessment of the 40 variables across the four sub-indexes, the northeast ranks first among the six regions in 17 of them. They include:

  • Economic diversification.
  • The contribution of exports to regional GDP.
  • Industrial parks.
  • GDP per capita.
  • Homes with running water.
  • Formal sector job growth.
  • Investment in water infrastructure.
  • Perceptions of corruption (i.e. it is perceived to have the lowest levels of corruption).
  • Perceptions of security.
  • Access to health care.
  • Labor productivity.
  • Highway robberies (i.e. the northeast has the lowest rate).
  • Employment informality (i.e. the northeast has the lowest percentage of informal sector workers).

The northeast didn’t rank last among the six regions in any of the 40 variables.

2. The northwest 

The northwest region is made up of the states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, Durango, Sinaloa, Sonora and Zacatecas. It ranked second in the attraction of investment and retention of talent, and third in the other two sub-indexes.

Its ICR score was 62.33, which equates to “medium-high competitiveness.”

The northwest ranked first on three of the 40 variables assessed by IMCO, taking the top spot for electricity prices, and natural gas prices, and for having the lowest percentage of residents with incomes below the poverty line.

The northwest ranked last among the six regions for expenditure by companies on security; energy intensity (electricity use-to-GDP ratio); homicides (i.e., it has the highest rate); respiratory morbidity; and changes (i.e., increases) to housing prices.

3. The Bajío 

In IMCO’s ICR, the Bajío region is made up of the states of Aguascalientes, Colima, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Querétaro, Michoacán and Nayarit.

It ranked first in the retention of investment sub-index, third in attraction of investment and fourth in both attraction of talent and retention of talent.

Its ICR score was 54.22, which equates to “medium-high competitiveness.”

The Bajío ranked first on three of the 40 variables, taking the top spot for per capita applications for patents; its unreported crime rate; and for respiratory morbidity (i.e., it has the lowest per capita rate of respiratory diseases).

The Bajío ranked last on just one variable — “income gap by gender.”

4. Central Mexico 

The “Centro,” or Central Mexico, region is made up of Mexico City, México state, Hidalgo and Morelos. It ranked second for attraction of talent, third for retention of talent, fourth for attraction of investment and sixth (last) for retention of investment.

Its ICR score was 49.11, which equates to “medium-low competitiveness.”

Although it only ranked fourth among the six regions, Central Mexico took top spot in eight of the 40 variables.

Centro ranked first for:

  • Foreign direct investment.
  • Educational attainment.
  • Educational coverage.
  • The percentage of the population with higher education qualifications.
  • Skilled labor.
  • Energy intensity.
  • Homicides (i.e. it has the lowest rate, according to IMCO, even though México state and Morelos are among Mexico’s 10 most violent states in terms of total murders).
  • Changes to housing prices.

5. The Maya region 

The Maya region is made up of the states of Campeche, Chiapas, Quintana Roo, Tabasco and Yucatán. It ranked fourth for retention of investment and fifth in each of the three other sub-indexes.

Its ICR score was 34.19, which equates to “medium-low competitiveness.”

The Maya region ranked first for “average age” (i.e. its residents are the youngest); strikes (i.e. it has the fewest); gender income gap; crime (i.e. it has the lowest rate); coverage of childcare centers; and infant mortality (i.e. it has the lowest rate).

It ranked last for economic diversification; industrial parks; patents; formal sector job growth; economic participation; electricity prices; incoming population flows; and the percentage of residents with incomes below the poverty line (i.e. it has the highest rate).

6. The Isthmus region 

For IMCO’s ICR, the Istmo, or Isthmus, region (named after the Isthmus of Tehuantepec) is made up of the states of Guerrero, Oaxaca, Puebla, Tlaxcala and Veracruz. It ranked fifth for retention of investment and sixth in the three other sub-indexes.

Its ICR score was 26.66, which equates to “low competitiveness.”

The Isthmus region ranked first for growth in the number of “economic units” with more than 50 employees; kilometers of highways per 1 billion pesos of GDP; and expenditure on security by companies.

It ranked last in 15 variables, including:

  • Foreign direct investment.
  • GDP per capita.
  • Homes with running water.
  • Educational attainment.
  • Skilled labor.
  • Investment in water infrastructure.
  • Labor productivity.

Observations and proposals from IMCO 

IMCO identified a number of “obstacles” that hinder regional competitiveness, including high levels of employment informality (more than half of Mexico’s workers are employed in the informal sector), insecurity and “high wage inequality,” which has a negative impact on talent retention.

IMCO described its Regional Competitiveness Index as a “key tool for guiding public policy, strengthening regional cooperation, and unlocking the collective value of the country’s regions.”

In that context, it offered proposals to the private sector, to state governments, and to the federal government.

For the private sector:

  • Establish “regional training hubs” for the training of workers at a “regional scale.” Such hubs, IMCO said, could be established by consortia of companies and industrial parks. The establishment of the hubs would “strengthen talent retention through coordinated investment in human capital,” and allow training costs to be shared, the think tank said.
  • Design operational strategies with a “regional focus,” including by “structuring supply chains, the location of suppliers and investment decisions” in a way that considers the region as “one single ecosystem.”
  • Maximizing the return on capital invested by “diversifying toward emerging sub-sectors” that are experiencing “rapid growth.” In addition, IMCO said that private companies should “align” their investment portfolios with the federal government’s Plan México initiative in order to take advantage of federal incentives and “co-investment mechanisms in strategic sectors such as energy and logistics.”

For state governments: 

  • State governments in each region should “align agendas” in order to “compete as a region,” rather than as “isolated” entities, IMCO said.
  • They should “consolidate common priorities,” such as reducing informality, improving access to health care and guaranteeing water supply in urban areas.
  • They should seek to reduce dependence on federal support and “strengthen regional resilience.”

For the federal government: 

  • The federal government should “orient programs and incentives” toward the development of regional projects.
  • Federal support for “nearshoring, logistics and technical training should prioritize projects that connect leading states [in competitiveness] with lagging entities.”

As part of Plan México, the federal government is already developing new “Economic Development Hubs For Well-Being, located within larger industrial corridors focused on specific sectors. Each of the corridors stretches across three or more states, and all focus on sectors including renewable energy, manufacturing, logistics, agriculture and tourism.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

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