The coronavirus is threatening to hamstring Mexico’s fight against some of its most vicious drug gangs, as police and officials fall sick, security forces are diverted to guard medical centres and military barracks are converted to Covid-19 clinics.

The powerful Jalisco cartel and its rivals are exploiting a security void to step up the fight for control of the drug trade in Mexico, security officials and analysts say.

The military, a central part of Mexico’s anti-cartel fight, has been drafted to help stem the coronavirus, converting barracks into Covid-19 treatment clinics.

With an official tally of over 18,300 fatalities, Mexico has the seventh-highest coronavirus death toll in the world.

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