The central Mexican city of Celaya has become the scene of a brutal turf war between rival drug cartels. These criminal groups have taken advantage of its strategic position at the crossroads for transporting drugs into the United States. Kidnappings, shootouts with police and drive-by killings now occur on an almost daily basis in broad daylight. Nearly 500 people were killed in Celaya last year. The city's police officers (pictured) risk their lives every day and are forced to travel in armoured vehicles. Our France 2 colleagues report, with FRANCE 24's Lauren Bain.

People in Mexico’s southernmost state, Chiapas, have for the last year and a half, been living through a conflict between rival criminal groups. The Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco Nueva Generacion Cartel are both vying for control of the territory. The state, which borders Guatemala, has long been a hotspot for trafficking drugs, arms and migrants. But ravaged by years of inter-community conflicts, the security situation in Mexico’s poorest state is now spiralling out of control.