Residents in Limones End Third Highway Blockade After Tense Negotiations

Bacalar, Mexico — Residents of the Limones community in Bacalar cleared Federal Highway 307 on Sunday afternoon, ending a six-hour blockade they had staged to demand the withdrawal of federal forces, whom they accused of misconduct during raids over the weekend.

The protest was lifted around 6 p.m. following more than two hours of tense dialogue with authorities, including Nabil Eljure Terrazas, the deputy secretary of government. The blockade had begun around noon, severely disrupting traffic in both directions on the highway.

This was the third such protest in recent days. Just the night before, residents had repeated a blockade they first carried out last Friday with the same demand, which was not resolved until after midnight.

This time, protesters demanded the presence of multiple officials to reach an agreement and end the demonstration. They alleged excessive force and abuses by police officers during 15 simultaneous raids this weekend, which resulted in the arrest of eight people suspected of belonging to a criminal group.

Riot police arrived in the area as talks between authorities and residents proceeded without violence. After the blockade was lifted, a group of local police officers and armed forces remained at the scene as of 7 p.m.

Further protests cannot be ruled out in the coming hours, as the Coordination Group for Peacebuilding continues investigative work to dismantle a criminal cell linked to violence in the Costa, Zona Maya, and Bacalar regions.