Mexico’s drug war uses drones, human shields, gunships

By MARK STEVENSON
Associated Press

AGUILILLA, Mexico (AP) — The Mexican government is rapidly running out of tools to control the expansion of the feared Jalisco cartel on the front lines of Mexico’s narco war in the western state of Michoacan. The stalled ground effort is being supplemented by an increasing aerial conflict. Mexico’s most militarily powerful drug gang has begun organizing townspeople to act as human shields against army troops. Residents of the town of Aguililla are fed up with the army’s strategy of simply separating competing gangs. They want the army to either fight both cartels, or at least let the two gangs fight it out among themselves.