This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Three Mexican soldiers were killed when gunmen opened fire on a military helicopter, forcing it to make an emergency landing in the western state of Jalisco.

Twelve others – 10 soldiers and two federal police officers – were injured, and three other soldiers were missing after the incident, according to local authorities. President Enrique Peña Nieto said through his Twitter account that he lamented the soldiers’ deaths.

The attack near the community of Autlán, about 120 miles south-west of the state capital, Guadalajara, came amid an eruption of violence across the state. Authorities asked residents to stay at home as they scrambled to extinguish burning vehicles blocking roads in various parts of Guadalajara and other parts of the state.

Such “narco-blockades” are a common cartel response to the arrest of important members or are used to foil police and military operations.



Fires were also reported in the coastal tourist destination of Puerto Vallarta at the start of a three-day holiday weekend when Mexicans take to the highways.

A Jalisco state spokesman, Gonzalo Sánchez, told Milenio TV that a police officer was killed in one of the clashes.

The state prosecutor’s office used its Twitter account to ask residents of Guadalajara to remain calm on Friday morning as authorities responded to the blockades ignited by a drug cartel. It said authorities were coordinating to extinguish fires and regain calm in other parts of the state’s interior.

The activity came as Mexico celebrated the 1 May holiday and the federal government announced the implementation of “Operation Jalisco” to improve the state’s security without providing further details.

The defense department said the helicopter that took fire was participating in Operation Jalisco near Villa Purificación, about 150 miles (250km) south-west of Guadalajara.

Last month, the Jalisco New Generation cartel killed 15 state police officers in an ambush.