SUMMARY

La Linea and Los Aztecas were two gangs operating under the Juarez Cartel. In 2018, a conflict between the groups erupted as members of La Linea assassinated the brother of the leader of Los Aztecas, which initiated a vicious turf war. The groups were both based in Ciudad Juárez in the state of Chihuahua, a lucrative smuggling route for narcotics heading to the U.S. and a highly disputed corridor by rival drug cartels.

The conflict was characterized by public executions, assassinations and torture, and revenge killings were frequent. The groups would threaten each other through the hanging of public banners, so called “narcomantas” across Ciudad Juárez.

The non-state conflict between La Linea and Los Aztecas was first included in UCDP data in 2018, when it reached over 100 conflict fatalities. In month of that year, fighting between the two cartels had resulted in more than 25 battle-related deaths.