Two American officials killed in a car crash early Sunday in northern Mexico while returning from a countercartel operation were officers of the Central Intelligence Agency, according to people familiar with the episode, raising questions about the agency\u2019s role in Mexico\u2019s war against drug cartels.<\/p>\n
The two C.I.A. officers, along with two Mexican officials, were killed<\/a> when their vehicle crashed while returning from an operation led by Mexico\u2019s armed forces to dismantle clandestine methamphetamine labs in the mountains, said the authorities in the state of Chihuahua, where the accident occurred.<\/p>\n The people confirming the Americans\u2019 identity spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive details of the episode.<\/p>\n The C.I.A. declined to comment.<\/p>\n President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico said on Monday that her cabinet had no prior knowledge of the activities involving the Americans in Chihuahua, which shares a border with the United States, and that there would be an investigation into whether their involvement in the operation violated Mexico\u2019s national security laws.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat has been agreed upon with the U.S. government \u2014 and has been very clear \u2014 is that information is shared and there is extensive joint intelligence work that allows federal forces to operate within our country\u2019s territory and U.S. forces within theirs,\u201d Ms. Sheinbaum said on Tuesday morning at her daily news conference. <\/p>\n Ms. Sheinbaum added Tuesday that the Americans were indeed \u201cworking alongside\u201d Mexican authorities, and that if the ongoing investigation confirms that the C.I.A. officers were engaged in a joint operation, her government would send a formal reprimand to the U.S. government.<\/p>\n Mexico\u2019s national security law forbids foreign agents, including U.S. military and law enforcement officials, from operating in the country without authorization from the government. American officials working directly with state-level authorities without federal approval would be a breach of the Constitution.<\/p>\n The Mexican government has consistently rejected pressure from the White House to deploy U.S. forces to Mexico to fight drug groups in an active role, saying that American boots on the ground would violate the country\u2019s sovereignty. Instead, Ms. Sheinbaum has insisted that Mexican troops lead the fight on the ground, with U.S. forces limited to support, sharing intelligence in joint operations centers or in a training capacity.<\/p>\n Still, the C.I.A., along with the Pentagon, have taken on an expanded role in the war against drugs and trafficking groups since President Trump took office early last year. The campaign against the cartels has historically been led by the Justice Department and its law enforcement arm, the Drug Enforcement Administration.<\/p>\n But after the Trump administration designated some two dozen drug organizations<\/a> as terrorist groups last year, it tapped into the military and the C.I.A.\u2019s more sophisticated, high-tech and lethal resources in the battle against the cartels.<\/p>\n The C.I.A. expanded a secret drone program<\/a> in Mexico, deploying surveillance drones more powerful than those used by the Justice Department to the fight. At the same time, the Pentagon has used lethal military equipment to target drug traffickers in the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean, killing at least 174 people<\/a> since those operations started late last year.<\/p>\n