Cartels take drug war to monster levels

The Mexican military carrying out a special operation against the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, who has armoured trucks in his arsenal. — ©️2023 The New York Times Company

IN the United States, some truck owners delight in modifying their rigs with oversized wheels, heavy-duty suspension kits and soot-spewing exhaust systems, turning them into the monster trucks that stalk organised events such as demolition derbies and mud bogs. How quaint.

In Mexico, drug cartels are taking the monster truck concept to another terrifying level, retrofitting popular pickups with battering rams, 10cm-thick steel plates welded onto their chassis and turrets for firing machine guns.