The Mystery of the Ambush

In most of Latin America, the military is the 800-pound gorilla that can sit anywhere it wants. The notable exception is Mexico, where, since a revolution ended in 1917, the military traditionally has stayed out of politics; as long as it does, the civilian government doesn’t interfere in its operation.

President Carlos Salinas de Gortari has followed that unspoken agreement in handling an explosive case in which seven Mexican drug agents were shot to death by Mexican soldiers during a bungled anti-drug operation in the state of Veracruz last Nov. 7.

As first reported by The Times last year, top U.S. officials had serious doubts about the initial explanation for the killings: that the drug agents (who were following a tip from U.S. Customs) had accidentally stumbled into an ambush laid by the army for cocaine smugglers. Angry U.S. officials suspected that at least some of the soldiers were in league with drug smugglers and had murdered the agents.

To defuse a potential U.S.-Mexico crisis over the incident, Salinas ordered an impartial investigation by Mexico’s Human Rights Commission. After a 20-day inquiry, the commission reported that it had found no evidence the army was involved in drug smuggling but concluded that the military was at fault in the killings. This week, the Mexican Defense Ministry announced that the two generals in command of the Veracruz military district and four other officers, including the lieutenant who commanded the soldiers at the scene, have been jailed. Beyond their identities and the charges against them, little information was provided.

Though it is reassuring that someone apparently is going to be held officially responsible for a shocking incident, more needs to be known. Either the Salinas government or the Mexican military still must answer a fundamentally important question: Was this a case of appalling incompetence or appalling corruption? The answer will impact future U.S.-Mexico cooperation in the all-important war on drugs.