Ayotzinapa Case / Tomás Zerón

Ayotzinapa Case. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said that his government should not be compared to that of former President Enrique Peña Nieto, as it is making progress in the investigations of the Ayotzinapa Case.

In 2014, during former President Enrique Peña Nieto’s administration, 43 students disappeared in Iguala, Guerrero. The government reported they were murdered by the United Warriors Cartel in Cocula and, according to the past administration, it was the Iguala police and army who handed over the students to the criminal group. Nevertheless, since the reopening of the case, new findings incriminating Enrique Peña Nieto’s government are popping up. The Truth Commission of the Ayotzinapa case reported that among the students there was an infiltrated soldier. In addition, former Army General Salvador Cienfuegos assured that the army was not involved in the case. However, new findings showed that some elements were in contact with the criminal group during the event.

Tomás Zerón. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador showed a video where Tomás Zerón allegedly commits torture to obtain information about the Ayotzinapa case. He said that this video shows the kind of person he is and stressed that he should not be protected by Israel. "This person is evil and is being protected by Israel. Justice must be done."

President López Obrador has repeatedly asked the government of Israel to extradite Tomás Zerón, former Head of the Criminal Investigation Agency, accused of torture and tampering with evidence in the disappearance of 43 students in 2014 in Ayotzinapa. In addition, he is accused of embezzling state funds. Zerón has denied the allegations and applied for asylum in Israel. Since September 2020, Mexico has filed several requests to start Zerón´s extradition process. The Israeli government has not responded to this petition.

Mayan Train. Diego Prieto, Director of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) stated that the archaeological rescue program of the Mayan Train has recovered 55,000 archaeological buildings; 1,266,000 ceramic pieces; 1,409 vessels, 653 bones and 2,252 natural elements.

Previously, Prieto emphasized that the Mayan Train archaeological rescue program is one of the largest investigations on the ancient Maya cultures ever done in the country. However, the population continues to resist the construction of the Mayan Train Section 5 South, a key part of one of President López Obrador's flagship infrastructure megaprojects, since it could damage the karst landscapes, the integrity of cenotes and cause significant deforestation, as well as destroy archeological and paleontological remains. Last year, Pietro reported that more than 29,000 archeological pieces have been recovered from the Mayan Train construction sites.