US no longer dominates drug war agenda in Central America

The Guatemala Times: It is very clear that the Presidents of Central America and many Latin American countries are tired of the empty promises and empty US rhetoric on the war on drugs. They have also learned the lesson from Mexico, where President Calderon has been doing as the US asks, turning the country into a bloodbath. Last week Gen. Charles Jacoby, commander of U.S. Northern Command, said during testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee: Mexico’s “decapitation” strategy of capturing or killing high-value drug cartel leaders with the help of U.S. has a problem, it isn´t working.

“The decapitation strategy — they’ve been successful at that. Twenty-two out of the top 37 trafficking figures that the Mexican government has gone after have been taken off the board. But it has not had an appreciable effect — an appreciable, positive effect.” read more

Drug War: Eliminating Cartel Leaders had 'Little Effect' on Mexico Violence, US General says

InSight Crime: "US Northern Command leader General Charles Jacoby told the Senate's Armed Services Committee that Mexico had successfully killed or captured 22 out of 37 of Mexico's most wanted drug traffickers, as identified by the Mexican government. He added that such results had "no appreciable effect," as violence continued to increase in Mexico. The country saw a 10 percent rise in homicides linked to organized crime between 2010 and 2011, finishing the year with nearly 13,000 murders.

Jacoby declined to give a personal assessment of the current security situation, noting only that violence had risen in 2011 and "trailed off as the year concluded." He described the current homicide statistics as "unacceptable." read more