Trump tells the UN he will "annihilate" Iran without a deal, hours before U.S. and Iranian officials hold their first direct talks in three months.
A fifteen-nation coalition moves at the UN to designate Latin American cartels as terrorists; Colombia is the only member with a concrete legislative step under way.
Spain reinforces Ceuta and Melilla as Morocco votes today, with July's deadly mass crossing and youth unrest shadowing the election.
Colombian forces kill a paramilitary group's second-in-command in Santa Marta; the president vows its top leader, "Pinocho," is next.
North America
Mexico Arrests Sanctioned Sinaloa Financier "Don Flaco" in Mexico City for Likely U.S. Extradition
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME
Mexico
United States
What? Mexico's FGR and federal security ministry arrested José Ángel Rivera Zazueta, alias "Don Flaco," in Mexico City's Cuauhtémoc borough on September 22 under a provisional detention order tied to a U.S. extradition request; Rivera Zazueta was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury's OFAC in January 2023 as a Sinaloa Cartel international operator accused of coordinating fentanyl, methamphetamine, and precursor-chemical shipments from China through Mexico into the United States, and Security Minister Omar García Harfuch credited FBI and DEA information-sharing with the arrest.
So what? Extraditing a sanctioned financier rather than only interdicting cargo signals Mexico's federal government is willing to hand over network-level operators, not just couriers, the kind of case Washington tends to cite as evidence of cooperation ahead of security-linked trade reviews. Because Rivera Zazueta's alleged role runs through China-sourced precursor chemicals rather than finished fentanyl, his case is also a marker for whether precursor-chain intelligence-sharing between the two governments is translating into arrests.
U.S. Assessment Warns Cartels Are Rapidly Advancing Weaponized-Drone Capabilities
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME
Mexico
Colombia
What? A U.S. government assessment reported by the Washington Post warns Latin American drug cartels are rapidly upgrading drone capabilities, partly by recruiting veterans of the Russia-Ukraine war, and are studying ways to evade counter-drone systems while acquiring aircraft able to fly farther and carry heavier explosive payloads; the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project recorded 38 weaponized-drone events in Colombia in 2024, 149 in 2025, and more than 200 by early September 2026, while cartels flew more than 42,000 drones near the U.S. border in 2025, with roughly 1,000 attempted crossings a day, most uninterdicted.
So what? A roughly fivefold jump in weaponized-drone incidents in under two years outpaces a counter-drone posture built mainly for reconnaissance and contraband drops, and war-tested pilots raise the odds of a deliberately weaponized strike near the border rather than just a smuggling overflight. The assessment itself is a signal that outpacing this curve, not just tallying seizures, is becoming the operative border-security metric to watch.
Investigation Finds Families Still Searching for Salvadorans Held Under Secret U.S.-Bukele Deportation Deal
PARTNERSHIPS
El Salvador
What? An investigation published September 21-22 by Forbidden Stories' Deportation Project, with partner outlets including PBS Frontline and France 24, found that families of Salvadoran men deported from the United States and funneled into El Salvador's prison system under a secret agreement between Presidents Trump and Bukele still do not know, roughly a year and a half later, what charges their relatives face or, in some cases, where they are held; El Salvador confirmed to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in June that one man, Elmer Concepcion Romero Janes, is held incommunicado at a prison in Santa Ana without disclosed charges.
So what? A journalism consortium documenting incommunicado detention and undisclosed charges more than a year into a partner government's custody could complicate the political sustainability of the third-country detention arrangement, regardless of its formal legal status. Renewed scrutiny of El Salvador's prison system also bears on any future removal or transit arrangement that assumes due-process guarantees once custody passes to that system.
Colombian Forces Kill Paramilitary Group's No. 2 in Santa Marta Raid; President Vows "Pinocho" Is Next
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME
Colombia
What? Colombian security forces killed José Luis Pérez Villanueva, alias "Cholo," second-in-command of the Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada (ACSN, also known as Los Pachenca), in a September 21-22 operation in Santa Marta that also killed six other alleged members, including the son of the group's top leader, Fredy Castillo Carrillo, alias "Pinocho"; President Abelardo De La Espriella traveled to Santa Marta and said the group's leaders "have been falling like rats," naming Pinocho as the next target and ordering the city further militarized.
So what? Killing a paramilitary group's second-in-command and the top leader's own son in one operation is a significant tactical blow that narrows Pinocho's protective circle just as the government has publicly committed to pursuing him personally, raising the odds of a decisive move against ACSN's remaining leadership within weeks. A militarized Santa Marta also bears on the near-term security posture at Colombia's Caribbean-coast cargo and cruise ports while the operation continues.
Fifteen-Nation Coalition Moves to Designate Latin American Cartels as Terrorist Organizations at UNGA
NATIONAL SECURITY
Colombia
Ecuador
Honduras
United States
What? President Trump, addressing the U.N. General Assembly, called Latin American cartels "the ISIS of the Western Hemisphere" and pledged "unmatched military might" against them, meeting separately with leaders and foreign ministers from a 15-government "Shield of the Americas" coalition that issued a joint statement September 22-23 committing to asset freezes, visa restrictions, and prosecutions against roughly two dozen designated groups under the 1947 Rio Treaty framework. Colombia is so far the only member with a concrete step under way, having asked its Congress to draft enabling legislation; Ecuador and Honduras have authorized U.S. military operations on their territory; Brazil and Mexico declined to join, with Brazil's Lula warning against "renewed hegemonic temptations."
So what? A joint declaration is a political commitment, not yet an operational one, and Colombia's Congress-drafting step is the only piece with a concrete legislative marker to track — the gap between the fifteen signatures and an actual enabling law or enforcement action is where this either becomes real multilateral cartel-interdiction cooperation or stalls as UNGA rhetoric. Two of the hemisphere's largest economies opting out also signals the coalition's operational reach will likely stay confined to the smaller, already security-dependent states that joined.
Analysis: Colombian and Ecuadorian Criminal Networks Deepen Cross-Border Cocaine Alliance
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME
Colombia
Ecuador
What? An Eurasia Review analysis reports that Colombia's Comandos de la Frontera — a FARC-dissident, post-paramilitary group based in lower Putumayo — has formed an operational alliance with Ecuador's Los Lobos gang, moving cocaine via the Putumayo and San Miguel rivers into Ecuador's Amazon region and onward to Pacific ports while weapons and fuel flow back into Colombia; the analysis cites an estimate that 70 to 80 percent of cocaine produced in southern Colombia now transits Ecuador.
So what? A named cross-border alliance, rather than parallel but separate trafficking, means disrupting one side's logistics increasingly requires coordinating with the other country's forces on the same operation rather than treating the border as a hard interdiction line. If the transit estimate holds, Ecuador's Pacific ports — not Colombia's own coastline — are now the more consequential customs and container-targeting chokepoint for southern Colombian cocaine.
Amnesty International: Ecuador's Military Still Withholding Information on Militarization-Linked Disappearances
PARTNERSHIPS
Ecuador
What? Amnesty International said September 22 that Ecuador's Ministry of Defense continues to withhold information, citing confidentiality, on security operations tied to a pattern of disappearances during the country's militarized anti-gang campaign, including 10 people disappeared on the coast under "Plan Fénix" and 26 more disappearances, plus 6 disappeared searchers, placed under Inter-American Commission on Human Rights precautionary measures between January and August 2026; a related case, the disappearance of four boys in Guayaquil, led to 16 military personnel being convicted in December 2025.
So what? A military that won't share operational information with human-rights investigators is a friction point for any foreign security-assistance relationship that assumes institutional accountability as a condition of cooperation, not just operational effectiveness against cartels. Continued non-cooperation, layered onto Ecuador's public appeals for more outside help, suggests Quito wants expanded external support without a matching increase in transparency — a gap worth watching before any new assistance package is finalized.
Spain Reinforces Ceuta and Melilla as Morocco Votes Amid Youth Unrest and Fallout From July's Mass Crossing
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
Spain
Morocco
What? Morocco held parliamentary elections September 23 for its 395-seat House of Representatives, the first vote since Gen Z-led protests over youth unemployment and July's mass crossing into Ceuta, in which more than 70,000 people attempted to cross and dozens died. Spain deployed 324 additional police (180 National Police, 144 Civil Guard) to Ceuta and Melilla ahead of online calls, tracked across more than 12,000 WhatsApp messages, for a new crossing timed to today's election; Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, in a CNN interview, said Moroccan "border control failed" in July, citing a Spanish police report that found Moroccan officers near the crossing point undermanned and making no serious attempt to stem the surge, and Morocco's Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said measures would be taken. As of this writing, no crossing has been confirmed at either enclave on election day itself.
So what? A preventive deployment rather than a reactive one suggests Madrid has internalized July's failure and is treating the online mobilization signal as credible enough to act on before any crossing occurs, itself worth tracking as a model for other high-risk crossing dates. Whether Morocco's post-election government follows through on Bourita's promised "measures" will be the real test of whether July's border-control failure gets addressed institutionally rather than just rhetorically.
UK Police Foil Suspected Terror Plot Targeting Manchester's Jewish Community Ahead of Yom Kippur
NATIONAL SECURITY
United Kingdom
What? Greater Manchester Police arrested two men in their 30s on Newton Street in central Manchester on September 20 under Section 41 of the Terrorism Act 2000, with related searches in Salford and Liverpool, disrupting what police called a plot to target the Jewish community in the Manchester area ahead of Yom Kippur, which began at sundown that evening; the arrests came almost a year after the October 2025 Heaton Park Synagogue attack, in which three people died, and police said they do not believe there is any ongoing threat, though a heightened police presence continues through the High Holy Day period.
So what? A disruption timed almost exactly to the anniversary of a completed attack on the same community suggests UK counterterrorism units are treating date-based, symbolically motivated plotting as a standing risk category rather than a one-off, with implications for how allied liaison services flag similar anniversary-linked risk windows. The swift, apparently intelligence-led disruption — ahead of any attack, unlike the 2025 case — is the more operationally relevant data point for partner services benchmarking Manchester's post-2025 protective posture.
Greek Coast Guard Arrests 13-Year-Old South Sudanese Boy as Alleged Smuggling-Boat Pilot
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
Greece
What? The Hellenic Coast Guard arrested a 13-year-old South Sudanese national on September 21 on suspicion of piloting a boat carrying 34 migrants that a Frontex drone detected roughly 32 nautical miles south of Gavdos; a Frontex vessel transferred the migrants to Paleochora port with no reported deaths, and Greek authorities separately arrested a 17-year-old South Sudanese national the same day over a second boat, of 50 people, that had departed from Tobruk, Libya.
So what? Smuggling networks placing children at the helm — a pattern Greek reporting describes as increasingly common on this route — lets organizers limit their own criminal exposure, since minors face a different legal track than adult smugglers, blunting prosecution-based deterrence. Continued use of the Tobruk-to-Crete departure point also confirms eastern Libya remains an active launch point independent of the western Mediterranean routes most enforcement attention has focused on.
U.S. and Iranian Officials Hold First Direct Talks Since War Began, as Trump Warns at UN He Will "Annihilate" Iran
NATIONAL SECURITY
Iran
United States
Qatar
What? U.S. officials Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi's delegation for roughly three hours in New York on September 22 — the first direct US-Iran contact in about three months — with Qatar's prime minister present for most of the session; Iran's stated conditions included an immediate end to the U.S. naval blockade, the return of frozen Iranian assets, and an end to the war "on all fronts," and Reuters separately reported Tehran has told mediators it would reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days if Washington eases military pressure. Hours earlier, addressing the U.N. General Assembly, President Trump asked whether a deal would let Iran "rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic, and do it quickly"; Trump called the talks "very good, very productive" and said another meeting is scheduled soon, though a deal would likely wait until after the U.S. election, while Iranian President Pezeshkian said Iran does not trust further negotiation and Araghchi said the administration's rhetoric had undercut the de-escalation opening Pezeshkian had signaled.
So what? A three-hour direct meeting held the same day as an "annihilate" threat is itself the signal — both sides are still choosing to talk even while escalating their public rhetoric, a more durable indicator of where this is heading than either government's UN-podium language. Iran's specific, conditional Hormuz-reopening offer gives shipping-security and customs planners a concrete trigger to watch for — a blockade-easing move — rather than an open-ended chokepoint risk with no visible off-ramp.
US Withholds Sudanese Army Chief's UN Visa Pending His Acceptance of a 90-Day Ceasefire
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
Sudan
United States
What? The United States is withholding an entry visa for Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereignty Council and commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces, ahead of the U.N. General Assembly, contingent on his accepting a 90-day ceasefire plan proposed by U.S. Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos, Reuters reported; Sudan's UN ambassador wrote to Secretary-General António Guterres asking the UN to intervene, Guterres said he is "deeply concerned" the visa has not been issued, and Sudan's foreign minister will address the assembly in Burhan's place. Sudan's civil war has displaced more than 9 million people internally and driven 4.4 million more into exile as refugees, with the UN projecting 33.7 million people — roughly two-thirds of the population — will need humanitarian assistance in 2026.
So what? Conditioning basic diplomatic access on ceasefire acceptance is an unusually blunt form of leverage that signals Washington now sees Burhan's continued resistance to a negotiated pause as the primary obstacle to de-escalation, not just one factor among several. If Burhan refuses under this pressure, the visa denial becomes a marker of how much further the world's largest displacement crisis grows before any U.S.-brokered process gains traction.
Houthis Claim Deadly Saudi Strikes as Yemen's Displacement Crisis Deepens
NATIONAL SECURITY
Saudi Arabia
Yemen
What? The Houthi movement said Saudi Arabia carried out a wave of strikes across Taiz, Al-Jawf, Marib, and Saada that it claims killed roughly 154 people over two days, including prison detainees and civilians in Mocha and Al-Jawf, according to an AFP wire report citing the Houthi-run health ministry; none of these casualty figures have been independently confirmed by Saudi Arabia or the UN. The claims follow the Houthis' capture of Yemen's Red Sea coast and the Bab el-Mandeb corridor and a Houthi strike that reached Riyadh, and come as the UN's displacement count for the current offensive, which stood near 130,000 as of September 21, is now forecast by the UN to exceed 230,000.
So what? Treat the casualty figures as Houthi claims, not confirmed fact, but a forecast displacement jump from 130,000 to over 230,000 is independently significant regardless of how the strike toll resolves, pointing to Taiz and the surrounding highlands as the source of the next major wave of Yemeni displacement. A conflict where both sides' own casualty claims are the only available numbers is a reminder that any migration or customs planning keyed to this corridor should treat currently reported figures as a floor, not a ceiling.
Libyan Customs Seizes €135,800 and Nearly 25 Kilograms of Gold at Tunisia Border Crossing
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME
SIGNIFICANT SEIZURE
Libya
What? Libya's Customs Authority Anti-Smuggling and Drugs Unit intercepted an Algerian-plated vehicle at the Ras Ajdir crossing with Tunisia, finding €135,800 in cash and eight gold bars weighing nearly 25 kilograms concealed within the vehicle's structure; no arrests were reported, and the case was referred to the Al-Zawia Partial Corruption Crimes Prosecution.
Taiwanese Official Warns Xi Will Offer Only "Empty Promises" Ahead of Wednesday's Summit With Trump
NATIONAL SECURITY
China
Taiwan
United States
What? An unnamed Taiwanese national-security official told the Taipei Times that President Xi Jinping is expected to use "empty promises" at his September 24 Washington summit with President Trump to press for reduced U.S. security commitments in the first island chain and relaxed export controls on advanced technology, citing recent Chinese military intimidation and an increased PLA coast guard, navy, and research-vessel presence in the East China Sea, Taiwan Strait, and South China Sea; Xi arrives at Andrews Air Force Base September 23 for his first U.S. state visit since 2015, with rare-earth export flow, tariffs, AI safeguards, and Taiwan arms sales on the summit agenda.
So what? A pre-summit warning from Taiwan's own security establishment is meant to pre-empt any U.S. concession on the island being read domestically as a genuine deliverable rather than atmospherics, suggesting Taipei expects Washington to face real pressure to signal some reduction in regional posture. Watch whether Wednesday's joint statement, if any, includes language on the first island chain or Taiwan arms sales specifically — that is the concrete marker separating a genuine shift from the "empty promises" Taipei is warning about.
Single-source · Source: Taipei Times (September 23, 2026)
Myanmar's Military Ruler Says He Wants to Rebuild Ties With the West, in First Western Interview Since 2021 Coup
PARTNERSHIPS
Myanmar
What? Min Aung Hlaing told Time magazine, in his first interview with a Western outlet since seizing power in 2021, that "it would be ideal if the U.S. could cooperate with us in fostering the peace, stability, and development essential for our people," urged Washington to "review objectively" its sanctions, and said Myanmar would pursue "a democratic system that truly aligns with our own culture, customs, and traditions" rather than committing to Western-style elections.
So what? A junta leader actively courting Western re-engagement, rather than doubling down on isolation, cracks open a door worth testing for narrower cooperation on the things that matter most at the border — anti-trafficking and precursor-chemical enforcement along the Myanmar-Thailand-China corridor — even without any broader political opening. The vague, culturally hedged democracy language signals Naypyidaw wants sanctions relief without committing to internationally recognized elections, so any engagement should be calibrated to concrete, verifiable steps rather than the interview's rhetoric alone.
Bolivian Courier Arrested in Macau With Liquid Cocaine Sewn Into Clothing, a Concealment Method Police Call a First
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME
SIGNIFICANT SEIZURE
Macau
Bolivia
What? Macau's Judiciary Police arrested a 26-year-old Bolivian woman at Macau International Airport after finding roughly 3.95 kilograms of liquid cocaine, valued at about 11.8 million patacas, concealed in the seams and linings of 11 items of clothing in her luggage; police said it was the first case they had identified using clothing linings to smuggle liquid cocaine into Macau, and said the woman told them she was recruited as a courier for a $5,000 fee, with Macau not believed to be the shipment's final destination.
India's Revenue Intelligence Agency Seizes More Than 845 Kilograms of Narcotics in Multi-City Crackdown
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME
SIGNIFICANT SEIZURE
India
What? India's Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seized more than 845 kilograms of narcotics combined across multiple operations, including 752 kilograms of cannabis concealed in rice husk inside a container truck near Bodh Gaya, roughly 6 kilograms of hashish smuggled from Nepal via Gorakhpur railway station, and 5.8 kilograms of cocaine from an air passenger arriving from Dubai via Doha at Delhi's airport; 15 people were arrested under India's narcotics law.
Unlikely Colombia's Congress passes enabling legislation to formally designate criminal groups as terrorist organizations within 60 days of President De La Espriella's September 22 request, given the complexity of drafting and passing security legislation on that timeline — unless the "Shield of the Americas" coalition's political momentum accelerates it.
Likely Colombian security forces capture or kill Fredy Castillo Carrillo, alias "Pinocho," within 60 days, given President De La Espriella's explicit public vow and the momentum from an operation that just killed Castillo Carrillo's deputy and his own son — tempered by ACSN's history of evading capture for years.
Unlikely Sudan's Burhan accepts the Boulos-proposed 90-day ceasefire within 14 days to secure his UN visa, given the army's stated reservations about the plan since July and its recent battlefield momentum — unless the diplomatic cost of missing UNGA outweighs the cost of a pause.
Roughly even odds Morocco and Spain formalize a new joint enforcement mechanism at Ceuta and Melilla within six months of today's election, balancing Rabat's promised "measures" against the two governments' history of slow-moving border cooperation.
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