• EMPTY: Streets were mostly empty and businesses remained closed Sunday in the colonial city of Córdoba (pop. 218,000) as a result of violent attacks by unidentified gunmen on Saturday that left four police officers dead in this central area of Mexico’s Gulf coast state of Veracruz.
• ATTACKS: The fourth-largest municipality in the State Veracruz nestled in a fertile agricultural valley, Córdoba was jolted by two seemingly coordinated attacks on Saturday against a police car and a police tower, additionally causing the cancellation of some local sports and cultural activities.
• CODE RED: “On Saturday, the state government activated a red code, and many shops did not open Sunday. Businesses are now beginning to resume operations, and there is a large presence of uniformed men in the streets”, said a local government source in Córdoba.
• ARRESTS: State authorities said they made two arrests after the attacks in Córdoba, saying that this is a reaction to recent police seizures of drugs, firearms, and cars. Local media links the Córdoba attacks with the arrest of a cartel member in the southern part of Veracruz.
