The international fight against drug trafficking is currently showing two very different faces. In one event, Mexican forces killed a major fentanyl dealer. At the same time, a former U.S. president has promised to pardon a convicted drug-trafficking leader. These events highlight deep disagreements in strategy.
The Mexican operation happened in Sinaloa, a region famous for powerful drug cartels. The target was Pedro Inzunza Coronel, also known as "El Pichón." Officials say he was a key part of a network sending synthetic opioids into the United States. Mexico’s Security Secretary stated that after detaining two other suspects, naval personnel were attacked and Coronel was killed. This comes after a raid last year on his assets, which seized over 1.65 tons of fentanyl—an amount that could have caused many deaths.
Coronel’s group, linked to the Beltran Leyva cartel, was under serious legal pressure from the United States. In a major step this May, U.S. authorities charged him and his father with narco-terrorism. They are accused of moving "tens of thousands of kilograms" of drugs.
In sharp contrast, there is the case of Juan Orlando Hernández. The former president of Honduras was a close U.S. ally but was convicted in a New York court last year for drug trafficking. He received a 45-year prison sentence. Now, former President Donald Trump has said he would free Hernández if re-elected. Trump claims Hernández was unfairly treated. This promise has shocked many in law enforcement, with one DEA agent calling the idea "crazy."
These two stories show a clear inconsistency. On one side, there is a fierce military and legal campaign against cartels. On the other, a convicted head of state, who used his power to help smuggle cocaine, is offered a potential pardon. This contradiction makes people question the real priorities in the drug war, where the flow of narcotics—and the damage they cause—never seems to stop.