Mexico soldiers, police kill 22 in anti-drug ops

Soldiers and police killed 22 people in counter-drug operations in three different Mexican states, officials said, as the Mexican Navy announced it was taking over security in the busy port of Veracruz. The developments highlight the Mexican military's key role in cracking down on the country's violent drug cartels. More than 45,000 people have been killed in drug-related violence in Mexico since December 2006, when the government launched a military-led crackdown on the cartels. In Panuco, the eastern state of Veracruz state, eight suspected traffickers were killed in fighting with members of an army unit, army commander Carlos Aguilar said without adding further details. In another incident in the same state, two suspected traffickers were killed in a clash with the army in the town of Coatzintla, Aguilar added. The federal government two months ago sent military and police reinforcements to Veracruz, on the Gulf of Mexico, which has been rocked by violence blamed on the Zetas cartel. The Zetas -- former hitmen for the Gulf cartel -- have spread fear with kidnappings and killings across Mexico and also in Guatemala in recent years. Late Wednesday the Navy announced it was taking over security duties in Veracruz -- Mexico's busiest Atlantic port -- and nearby Boca del Rio, where 35 bodies, apparent victims of turf battles among drug cartels, were found in the streets in September. State spokeswoman Gina Dominguez said that navy personnel would carry out police duties, while members of the now-disbanded local police could join the federal police force. To the west in Sinaloa state, on the Pacific coast, prosecutors said six suspected drug traffickers were killed in army and police operations in the towns of Guasave and Ahome that rescued a kidnapped businessman and several workers. Guadalupe Miranda, known as the "King of Beans," had been abducted along with relatives and workers by gunmen demanding part of his crop and a cash payment as ransom. Prosecutors did not say how many workers were rescued along with Miranda. And in the western state of Jalisco, six gunmen were killed in a clash with police Wednesday near the town of Milpillas, the state Public Security office said. A gun battle broke out when police on patrol in a rural area came upon a group of suspicious men, who opened fire, according to a statement released by office, which said 15 gunmen fled.