A large-scale firefight broke out Friday when federal forces came under fire in an area of western Mexico dominated by drug cartels, two Mexican officials said, according to AP. One official said a convoy of federal police and soldiers were ambushed near the border of Michoacan and Jalisco states. Neither official could confirm a number of dead. A federal police official said the country's top security officials were en route to assess what happened. The area between Michoacan and Jalisco is known as a stronghold of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, which has mounted several large-scale attacks on federal and state forces in recent weeks. Both sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press. The scene of the shootout is close to the community of La Barca, where authorities earlier found more than five dozen bodies in mass graves linked to the Jalisco New Generation cartel. The area also has been marked by killings of politicians. -- SPA 23:16 LOCAL TIME 20:16 GMT تغريد
