Drugs

Cartel violence in Mexico raises tourism concerns ahead of FIFA World Cup

Maria Dolores Aguirre's family corner store has lived off tourism that has flowed into her charming cobblestoned town of Tapalpa, tucked away in the mountains of Jalisco state. That was until gunshots erupted and helicopters flew overhead as the Mexican army killed the country's most powerful drug lord, just a few kilometers from her home. Now, the 50-year-old Aguirre worries that the bloodshed will deal a blow to her livelihood and change towns like hers. It is something many in the western Mexican state are grappling with, from its Pacific Ocean beaches to its capital Guadalajara that will host matches in June for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. "It's going to affect us. It's collateral damage," Aguirre said. "The government is going to have to have a lot of security... The entire world just saw what happened and, of course, people are going to think twice about coming." Fighting between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and Mexican security forces raged on in a number of states Monday,

All about El Mencho, the Mexican drug lord killed in military operation

From a small village in Michoacan to leading the powerful CJNG cartel across 60 countries, El Mencho built a vast drug network before being killed in a Mexican army operation in Jalisco

Mexican forces tracked drug lord El Mencho to cabin by following his lover

Top security officials revealed details of the operation that led to the death of Mexico's most wanted drug cartel leader

Three killed as US military strikes alleged drug boat in Caribbean Sea

The US military said it killed three people Monday in a strike on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the Caribbean Sea as part of the Trump administration's months-long campaign against alleged traffickers. Monday's attack brought the death toll to at least 151 people since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls "narcoterrorists" in small vessels in early September. As with most of the military's statements on the more than 40 known strikes, US Southern Command said it targeted alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs but posted a video on X that showed a small boat with outboard engines being destroyed. "Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," Southern Command stated in a post on X. "Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action." President Donald Trump

Mexico erupts after cartel boss killed; India issues advisory: What we know

Mexico saw gun battles, arson and road blockades after its army killed cartel boss El Mencho. With violence spreading across states, India and the US advised citizens to shelter in place

Mexican army kills leader of powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel

The Mexican army killed the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, "El Mencho, " on Sunday, decapitating what had become Mexico's most powerful cartel and giving the government its biggest prize yet to show the Trump administration its efforts. Oseguera Cervantes was wounded in an operation to capture him Sunday in Tapalpa, Jalisco about a two-hour drive southwest of Guadalajara and he died while being flown to Mexico City, the Defense Department said in a statement. The state is the base of the cartel known for trafficking huge quantities of fentanyl and other drugs to the United States. During the operation, troops came under fire and killed four people at the location. Three more people, including Oseguera Cervantes, were wounded and later died, the statement said. Two others were arrested and armored vehicles, rocket launchers and other arms were seized. Three members of the armed forces were wounded and receiving medical ...

US military strikes another alleged drug boat in eastern Pacific, killing 3

The US military said Friday that it has carried out another deadly strike on a vessel accused of trafficking drugs in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. US Southern Command said on social media that the boat "was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations." It said the strike killed three people. A video linked to the post shows a boat floating in the water before bursting into flames. Friday's attack raises the death toll from the Trump administration's strikes on alleged drug boats to at least 148 people in at least 43 attacks carried out since early September in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. President Donald Trump has said the US is in "armed conflict" with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs. But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing "narcoterrorists." Critics have questioned the overa

Mexico, El Salvador seize over 10 tonnes of cocaine amid deadly US strikes

The navies of El Salvador and Mexico announced drug seizures in the Pacific Ocean this week of more than 10 tonnes of cocaine, in contrast to deadly strikes by the US government that just this week left 11 people dead on three boats suspected of carrying drugs in Latin American waters. The latest announcement came Thursday, when Mexico said it had seized nearly four tonnes of suspected drugs and detained three people from a semisubmersible craft, 250 nautical miles (463 kilometres) south of the port of Manzanillo. Mexican Security Secretary Omar Garcia Harfuch said via X that the seizure from the sleek, low-riding boat with three visible motors brought the weekly total to nearly 10 tonnes, but he did not provide detail on the other seizures. Mexican authorities said the seizure was made with intelligence shared US Northern Command and the US Joint Interagency Task Force South. On Sunday, El Salvador's navy announced the largest drug seizure in the country's history of 6.6 tonnes of

Budget 2026: Pharma dept prescribes PLI boost for bulk drug output

FY27 PLI scheme allocation rises 2.24%, aiming to add 500 MT to domestic API production

First wave of generic semaglutide approvals opens up India market

India has entered the first phase of generic semaglutide approvals, with CDSCO clearing multiple formulations for obesity and diabetes, paving the way for lower-cost GLP-1 therapies

CDSCO flags 7 drugs as spurious, 167 fail quality tests in Dec 2025

CDSCO has flagged seven drug batches as spurious and listed 167 others as not of standard quality in its December 2025 surveillance, covering common medicines for BP, pain and allergies

Centre empowers LGs of five UTs to act under Drugs and Magic Remedies Act

Lieutenant Governors or administrators of five Union territories will now have the power to authorise officers to search any premises or seize any record related to misleading advertisements claiming magical properties and remedies for the treatment of certain diseases like cancer and diabetes. In an order notified in the gazette recently by the Home Ministry, the government has delegated the powers to LGs or administrators of the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, Lakshadweep, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Puducherry. "...the President hereby directs that the administrator (whether known as LG or administrator) of Union territories of Lakshadweep, Chandigarh and Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir shall, subject to the control of the President and until further orders, exercise the power and discharge the functions of the state government under the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 (2

Former Kerala minister sentenced to three years' jail in 1990 drug case

A court here on Saturday sentenced former Kerala transport minister Antony Raju and a court official to imprisonment for tampering with evidence in a 1990 drug seizure case. Raju, a serving MLA of the Janadhipathya Kerala Congress and an LDF ally, was convicted by the Nedumangad Judicial First Class Magistrate Ruby Ismail in connection with tampering with evidence related to the seizure of 61.5 grams of hashish from an Australian national at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in 1990. The court also convicted K S Jose, a former clerk of a court in Thiruvananthapuram, in the case. Both were found guilty under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 193 (giving false evidence), 409 (criminal breach of trust by a public servant), 465 (forgery) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention). Raju was sentenced to six months' imprisonment under Section 120B, three .

Govt proposes stricter rules for sale of cough syrups after safety issues

Objections and suggestions which may be received from any person within the period specified above will be considered by the Central Government

Centre to restrict cough syrup sales by unlicensed village pharmacists

Draft amendments propose removing "syrup" from Schedule K exemptions, tightening over-the-counter sales in small villages after Madhya Pradesh cough syrup deaths

One killed as US strikes another alleged drug-smuggling boat in Pacific

The US military said Monday that it had conducted another strike against a boat it said was smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing one person. In a social media post, US Southern Command said, Intelligence confirmed the low-profile vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations. Southern Command provided no evidence that the vessel was engaged in drug smuggling. A video posted by US Southern Command shows splashes of water near one side of the boat. After a second salvo, the rear of the boat catches fire. More splashes engulf the craft and the fire grows. In the final second of the video, the vessel can be seen adrift with a large patch of fire alongside it. Earlier videos of US boat strikes showed vessels suddenly exploding, suggesting missile strikes. Some strike videos even had visible rocket-like projectiles coming down on the boats. The Trump administration has said the strikes we

Yudh Nashian Virudh: Punjab Police raids 494 drug hotspots in statewide ops

The Punjab government has also constituted a 5-member Cabinet Sub-Committee, led by Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, to monitor the war on drugs

Respiratory drug sales surge in November as air quality continues to worsen

Rising pollution levels in November have led to a sharp jump in respiratory medicine sales, with asthma and allergy treatments seeing strong demand

Doctor who sold ketamine to actor Matthew Perry gets 2.5 years in prison

A doctor who pleaded guilty to selling ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before the "Friends" star's overdose death has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison. Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett handed down the sentence plus two years of probation to 44-year-old Dr. Salvador Plasencia in a federal courtroom in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Plasencia was the first to be sentenced of the five defendants who have pleaded guilty in connection with Perry's death at age 54 in 2023. Plasencia admitted to illegally selling large amounts of ketamine to Perry, though he did not supply the dose that authorities say killed the actor. The doctor admitted to taking advantage of Perry, knowing he was a struggling addict. Plasencia texted another doctor that Perry was a "moron" who could be exploited for money, according to court filings.

Doctor to be sentenced for selling Matthew Perry ketamine before his death

A doctor who pleaded guilty to selling ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before the Friends star's overdose death is set to be the first of five people sentenced in the case on Wednesday. Perry's family and possibly others affected by his death will have a chance to make a statement in federal court in Los Angeles before the sentencing of Dr Salvador Plasencia. Prosecutors are asking US District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett to sentence Plasencia, 44, to three years in prison after a plea agreement where the doctor admitted to illegally selling Perry large amounts of ketamine. He was not accused of selling the actor the dose that investigators say killed him on October 28, 2023. Perry had been taking the surgical anesthetic ketamine legally as a treatment for depression. But when his regular doctor wouldn't provide it in the amounts he wanted, he turned to Plasencia, who admitted to illegally selling to Perry despite knowing he was a struggling addict. He texted another doctor