Mexico's senate descended into violence this week as two of the country's most prominent politicians shoved, grabbed and shouted at each other after a tense debate over the potential presence of foreign troops.
The altercation began after lawmakers finished singing the national anthem on Wednesday, when Alejandro 'Alito' Moreno, leader of the opposition Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), approached senate president Gerardo Fernández Noroña of the ruling Morena party. In livestreamed footage, Moreno is seen repeatedly demanding to speak before grabbing at Noroña, slapping him on the neck, and knocking an aide to the floor. Another lawmaker then took a swing at Noroña as he tried to leave the podium.
Fernández Noroña later told reporters: '[Moreno] started to provoke me, to touch me, to pull at me. He hit me on the arms and said: "I'm going to beat the shit out of you, I'm going to kill you."' In a social media post, Moreno responded: 'When Noroña crossed the line, he knew exactly what he was doing. I will always respond head-on, with character and without fear, to defend Mexico and give it the direction it deserves.'
The scuffle followed a heated debate in which Morena and its allies accused the opposition PRI and National Action Party (PAN) of calling for US military intervention in Mexico — a claim both parties denied. Earlier this week, a PAN senator told Fox News that 'help from the United States to fight the cartels in Mexico is absolutely welcome'. The issue has become particularly sensitive after Donald Trump reportedly authorised the use of military force against drug cartels deemed terrorist organisations in Latin American countries.
In the aftermath, Fernández Noroña said he would call an emergency session on Friday and propose expelling Moreno and three other PRI lawmakers, adding that he had filed a criminal complaint against Moreno. Moreno, in turn, accused the governing party of changing the day's order at the last minute to silence the opposition.
