CIA Director Ratcliffe Escalates Mexico Drug War After Officers Die in Secret Cartel Raid

John Ratcliffe, as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, has overseen a more aggressive push against drug cartels in Mexico. The Washington Post reports that under his leadership, the agency has ramped up intelligence sharing with Mexican antidrug units, boosted training for local counternarcotics teams, and flown unarmed drones over Mexico to track cartel leaders and pinpoint illegal drug labs. This aligns with President Trump's top priorities since taking office. A major revelation came this week about a deadly incident in Chihuahua state. On April 19, two United States embassy instructors died when their vehicle plunged down a mountain ravine during a raid on a methamphetamine lab. Sources told the Washington Post those men were actually CIA officers working on counternarcotics operations. Chihuahua Attorney General Cesar Jauregui initially denied any foreign agent involvement, but the report exposed the CIA presence. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum reacted strongly, considering sanctions against Chihuahua's government for not getting federal approval for United States security collaboration. She demanded a meeting with Governor Maria Eugenia Campos Galvan of the opposition National Action Party. Mexico's Senate Commission on Constitutional Issues is now mediating between state and federal authorities. Lawmakers from Sheinbaum's MORENA party accused Campos and her party of betraying Mexico by hiding the CIA role. On the Iran front, Ratcliffe dismissed Israeli regime-change plans pitched to President Trump in February as farcical, according to a Cyprus Mail article citing New York Times reporting. Despite his assessment, and blunt pushback from Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling it bullshit, Trump proceeded, leading to war by February 28. Emptywheel notes Ratcliffe joined top officials, including Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a recent White House meeting on Iran risks. These developments highlight Ratcliffe's hands-on role in high-stakes global operations amid escalating tensions. Thank you for tuning in, listeners. Please subscribe for more updates. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.