Women in the Mexican drug war

Since the beginning of the Mexican Drug War in 2006, many women, of Mexican and other nationalities, have been victims of extortion, rape,^[1][2] torture,^[3][4][5][6] and murder,^{[7][8][9][10][11]} as well as forced disappearance, by belligerents on all sides.^[12] Women have been sex trafficked in Mexico by the cartels and gangs.^[13] The criminal organizations, in turn, use the profits to buy weapons and expand. They have harmed^[14][15] and carried out sexual assault of migrants from Latin America to the United States. The violence against women in the drug war has spread beyond Mexico to bordering and nearby countries in Central America and North America. The number of women killed in the conflict is unknown because of the lack of data.^[16] Women officials, judges, lawyers,^[17] paralegals,^[18] reporters,^[19] business owners, social media influencers, teachers, and non-governmental organizations directors have also been involved in the conflict in different capacities. There have been female combatants in the military, police,^[20] cartels, and gangs. Women have lost loved ones in the conflict.^[21][22]