The U.S. government issued a travel alert for Americans planning to visit Mexicali and temporarily suspended consular activities in the border city due to a “potential threat,” without providing details.
The notice, released Monday night, said that because of that information, consular activities and travel to the capital of Baja California state, across the border from Calexico in Imperial County, were suspended.
The U.S. did not provide details about the threat or at whom it was directed and only urged its citizens to avoid government buildings, seek shelter in the event of an incident and remain aware of their surroundings.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Tuesday that “there was an alert about the possibility of a criminal group” and added that the report was based on information from U.S. agencies.
“There is no further information about what this alert could involve, but simply to remain alert and maintain surveillance in Mexicali,” Sheinbaum said at her regular morning news conference.
The city remained calm throughout the day Tuesday. Later that afternoon, Sheinbaum’s security cabinet said in a statement that authorities “have not identified any elements confirming a specific or imminent risk to the population” but that authorities had stepped up surveillance and patrols in Mexicali as a “preventative measure.”
Around midnight, Baja California Gov. Marina del Pilar Ávila said in a message on her X account that Mexican authorities remained active and that security operations would be reinforced in the state capital.
Mexicali, with more than 1 million residents, is one of the most populous cities along the Mexican border and is strategically important because of its close commercial and social ties with Calexico.
