'We do not want war': Mexico president defends release of El Chapo’s son

Andri(C)s Manuel Lopez Obrador said security forces saved lives by releasing jailed kingpin's son after his brief capture in Culiacin

Mexico's president, Andri(C)s Manuel Lopez Obrador, has insisted that his government was right to release one of the sons of imprisoned drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmin, a day after his brief capture by the army sparked a wave of attacks by cartel gunmen who took soldiers hostage and paralyzed the northern city of Culiacin.

"This decision was taken to protect citizens. You cannot fight fire with fire," Lopez Obrador said in his daily press conference on Friday morning. "We do not want deaths. We do not want war."