Soldiers keep up clash with cartel gunmen a day after Mexico's military killed top drug lord

TAPALPA, Mexico (AP) — A day after the Mexican army killed the country's most powerful drug lord, the picturesque town where it happened was a study in contrasts.

Children whose classes had been suspended by the outbreak of violence played in cobblestone streets and tourist shops were open on Tapalpa's main plaza Monday. But gunshots also rang out, and just outside the town a dead man lay on the road next to a Jeep sprayed with bullets.

Meanwhile, heavily armed Mexican security forces kept up their battle with cartel gunmen following the killing that sparked a surge in violence and put the country on edge. Cartel fighters continued to block roads as smoke rose on the outskirts of the town in the state of Jalisco.

More than 70 people died in the attempt to capture Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes and the aftermath, authorities said Monday. Known as “El Mencho,” he was the notorious leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of the most powerful criminal organizations in Mexico.

The body count taken by security officials included security forces, suspected cartel members and others. Officials did not offer details, and the circumstances of most of the deaths were unclear.

Oseguera Cervantes was the boss of one of the fastest-growing criminal networks in Mexico, known for trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine to the United States and staging brazen attacks against Mexican government officials. The organization responded to his death with widespread violence, including erecting more than 250 roadblocks across 20 states and setting fire to vehicles.

The capo died after a shootout with the Mexican military on Sunday. Mexican Defense Secretary Gen. Ricardo Trevilla said Monday that authorities had tracked one of his romantic partners to his hideout in Tapalpa.

The cartel leader and two bodyguards fled into a wooded area where they were seriously wounded in a firefight. They were taken into custody and died on the way to Mexico City, Trevilla said.

In a different location in Jalisco, soldiers killed another high-ranking cartel member who Trevilla said was coordinating violence and offering more than $1,000 for every soldier killed.

Mexican authorities reported that 25 members of the Mexican National Guard were killed in six separate attacks, while some 30 criminal suspects were killed in Jalisco, and four others in the neighboring state of Michoacan. Also killed were a prison guard and an agent from the state prosecutor’s office.

The White House confirmed that the U.S. provided intelligence support to the operation to capture the cartel leader and applauded Mexico’s army for taking down a man who was one of the most wanted criminals in both countries.

Mexico hoped the death of the world’s biggest fentanyl traffickers would ease Trump administration pressure to do more against the cartels, but many people were anxious as they waited to see the powerful cartel’s reaction.

As the threat of more violence loomed, several Mexican states canceled school Monday, while local and foreign governments warned their citizens to stay inside.

Steve Perkins, 57, had been visiting Puerto Vallarta with his wife and friends. The couple was scheduled to return to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, on Monday when their flight was canceled.

Perkins said he and his wife were having coffee on the terrace of their hotel room in downtown when they heard rounds of explosions and gunshots, and saw smoke billowing over the city around 8:30 a.m.

“The entire downtown in the bay was just covered in thick black smoke, pretty scary,” Perkins said. “And then at one point, we heard screams. We heard a lot of screams … So then we started getting really worried.”

Perkins and his wife traded out their flip-flops for running shoes in case “we needed to make a run for it.”

“My wife called our kids to tell them goodbye if we were never gonna see them again," Perkins said.

The U.S. Embassy said via X that its personnel in eight cities and in the state of Michoacan would shelter in place and work remotely Monday. It warned U.S. citizens in many parts of Mexico to do the same.

In Guadalajara, the state capital, some ventured out into the streets to work and buy supplies, a notable change from Sunday, when Mexico's second-largest city was almost completely shut down as fearful residents stayed home.

More than 1,000 people were stuck overnight in Guadalajara’s zoo, where they slept in buses. Families were left stranded, unable to return home to nearby states like Zacatecas and Michoacan, said Luis Soto Rendón, the zoo’s director.

“We decided to let people stay inside the zoo for their safety,” Soto said. “We have everyone from small children to senior citizens.”

José Luis Ramírez, a 54-year-old therapist, was in a long line of people waiting outside a pharmacy, one of the few businesses that were open Monday in Guadalajara. Families were buying food, medicine, water, diapers and baby formula, from pharmacists through a chained door.

It was Ramírez’s first time leaving the house since the violence erupted.

“We have to not think scared, but be cool-headed, like they say, and take things as they come,” he said.

Those who had to work carefully made their way across the city.

Irma Hernández, a 43-year-old hotel security guard in Guadalajara, normally takes public transportation to her job, but buses were not running, and she had no way to cross the city. Her bosses organized a private car to pick her up. Her family, she said, was staying at home, too scared to leave.

“I am worried because I don't know how to get home if something happens,” she said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded Mexico do more to fight the smuggling of fentanyl, threatening to impose more tariffs or take unilateral military action if the country does not show results.

The U.S. State Department had offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to the arrest of El Mencho. The Jalisco New Generation Cartel began operating around 2009.

In February 2025, the Trump administration designated the cartel as a foreign terrorist organization. It has been one of the most aggressive cartels in its attacks on the military — including on helicopters — and is a pioneer in launching explosives from drones and installing mines.

At a blockade Monday on the outskirts of Tapalpa, 25-year-old Joel Ramírez and two friends were waiting for soldiers to clear a blockade of tree limbs. He hauls things in his pickup for a living and had not been able to get home since Sunday's violence.

“Everything seems calmer, but we were almost there and got stuck,” he said. “We're scared.”

Verza reported from Mexico City. Associated Press writers Fabiola Sánchez in Mexico City and Juan Lozano in Houston also contributed to this report.

A body lies beside a bullet-riddled vehicle in Tapalpa, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, a day after the Mexican army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Vehicles pass a burned car a day after the Mexican army killed the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

National Guard patrol past a charred vehicle the day after the Mexican army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

This wanted poster released on Dec. 4, 2024 on the U.S. State Department website shows leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” (U.S. State Department via AP)

A charred truck blocks a road the day after the Mexican army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum gives her the daily, morning news conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, the day after the Mexican army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Ginnette Riquelme)

Vehicles pass a burned car a day after the Mexican army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Mexican Security and Citizen Protection Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch speaks as President Claudia Sheinbaum looks on during her daily, morning news conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, the day after the Mexican army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Ginnette Riquelme)

A National Guard patrols the area outside of the General Prosecutor's headquarters in Mexico City, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, after authorities reported that the Mexican Army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Ginette Riquelme)

Charred vehicles sit in a parking lot sit outside a shopping mall in Guadalajara, Jalisco state, Mexico, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, as authorities reported that the Mexican Army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Alejandra Leyva)

National Guards patrol the area outside of the General Prosecutor's headquarters in Mexico City, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, after authorities reported that the Mexican Army killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Ginette Riquelme)

Carts stand outside of a vandalized supermarket in Guadalajara, Jalisco state, Mexico, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, after the death of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Alejandra Leyva)

Army soldiers patrol outside the National Palace ahead of the daily, morning news conference by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in Mexico City, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Ginnette Riquelme)

A police officer stands guard by a charred vehicle after it was set on fire, on a road in Guadalajara, Jalisco state, Mexico, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, after the death of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Alejandra Leyva)

A charred vehicle sits at a damaged supermarket in Guadalajara, Jalisco state, Mexico, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, after the death of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Alejandra Leyva)

National Guards remove pedestrians by the General Prosecutor's headquarters in Mexico City, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, after the death of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Ginette Riquelme)

A soldier stands guard by a charred vehicle after it was set on fire, in Cointzio, Michoacán state, Mexico, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, following the death of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Armando Solis)

A man rides a bike next to a convenience store that was set on fire, in San Francisco del Ricon, Guanajuato state, Mexico, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, after the death of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Alfredo Valadez)

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Liverpool is aiming for another famous Champions League comeback against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday.

The six-time European champion trails 2-0 after the first leg of the quarterfinal in Paris. But it is hoping for the type of Anfield night that saw it rout Barcelona 4-0 in the semifinals in 2019 to overturn a 3-0 first leg loss.

“There is a belief that we can do special things . . . but we need to be very, very, very special," coach Arne Slot said ahead of the match. “We know we need an exceptional performance to go through to the next round.”

Defending champion PSG totally dominated the first leg last week and could have ran up a more commanding lead if it had taken its chances.

Coach Luis Enrique warned his team about the potential to slip up with the semifinals within touching distance.

“You need to be really careful, there could be pitfalls and it could be a trap,” he said. “Everyone says, ‘You won (the first leg) easily and you were much better than (the) opposition.’ It might be the case but things can change so quickly in a football match.”

Barcelona must also overturn a 2-0 first leg loss against Atletico Madrid if it is to advance to the semifinals.

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

PSG's Willian Pacho, left, and Liverpool's Hugo Ekitike challenge for the ball during the Champions League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool in Paris, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique attends a press conference in Liverpool, England, Monday April 13, 2026, one day ahead of their Champions League soccer match against Liverpool. (Peter Byrne/PA via AP)

Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk gestures during the Champions League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool in Paris, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)