Four Americans were reportedly caught in a fiery multi-vehicle crash in Mexico that left at least 10 people dead and about 10 others injured. 

The massive pileup happened Sunday after a tractor-trailer crashed into multiple vehicles on a highway in the western state of Jalisco, according to the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit. 

While the agency reported 10 deaths, Mexico’s Army, Air Force and National Guard said nine people were killed.

Jalisco Civil Protection told Reuters that four Americans suffered minor injuries and were transported to a local hospital.

EIGHT BELIEVED DEAD AFTER B-52 CRASHES SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF FROM EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE

«Four patients in minor condition, all U.S. citizens, were transferred to the Arboledas Hospital in Guadalajara by a private ambulance from the highway,» Jalisco Civil Protection said.

Reuters reported that two of those killed were minors.

Another two of the injured were identified as National Guard members who suffered serious injuries and were taken to a hospital in Guadalajara, according to Reuters. 

Videos circulating on social media appeared to show several vehicles engulfed in flames along the highway connecting Guadalajara and Tepic, sending multiple plumes of black smoke into the air. 

MISSOURI SKYDIVING PLANE CRASH THAT KILLED ALL 12 ABOARD IS A ‘DEVASTATING LOSS,’ COMPANY SAYS

A firefighter works to douse the smoking engine of a destroyed vehicle after a devastating highway collision in Jalisco, Mexico, on Sunday. (Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit)

According to Mexican officials, the crash happened when a tractor-trailer apparently suffered a brake failure and slammed into a line of vehicles that had stopped because of an earlier accident. 

«According to initial reports, a trailer reportedly suffered a failure in its braking system and ended up crashing into several vehicles that were stopped due to a prior incident,» Mexico’s Army, Air Force and National Guard said in a post on X. 

POPULAR FLORIDA SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER KILLED IN DRIVE-BY SHOOTING WHILE INSIDE LUXURY SUV

The initial accident reportedly involved a rear-end collision between two tractor-trailers. As emergency crews responded, a third tractor-trailer crashed into the scene, according to the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit. 

«As a result of this second impact, three private vehicles and two tractor-trailer trucks were completely destroyed by the fire,» the authorities said. «Additionally, two other private vehicles and an official Dodge Charger unit belonging to the National Guard sustained material damage. «

Mexican authorities inspect the incinerated frame of a tractor-trailer on a highway connecting Guadalajara and Tepic in Jalisco, Mexico, on Sunday. (Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Firefighters later extinguished the blaze, officials said. 

Local outlet El Financiero reported that the driver of the tractor-trailer was detained by the National Guard. 

Reuters contributed to this report. 

Washington D.C.’s entrenched politicos sprang into action this week before key confirmation hearings in the U.S. Senate to try and sink President Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general.

Roughly 1,200 Department of Justice (DOJ) alumni signed off on a letter on Tuesday sent to high-ranking Senate Judiciary Committee leaders demanding they reject elevating Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche as he prepares for confirmation hearings next week on July 15 and 16.

Blanche, who previously served as former AG Pam Bondi’s No. 2, has been tapped by the 47th president to do the job permanently, sending the former bureaucrats into a frenzy.

TRUMP SAYS HE WILL NOMINATE ACTING AG TODD BLANCHE TO PERMANENTLY LEAD JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

The signatories of the letter trying to stop the process bill themselves as former DOJ employees from Republican and Democratic administrations, which is true. But even a cursory look at some of the names reveals the letter’s true hyperpartisan nature.

Here are a few:

• Lori Lightfoot, the former mayor of Chicago and a far-left Democrat with a long history of anti-Trump rhetoric.
• JP Cooney, an ex-prosecutor and Democratic congressional candidate who served as Jack Smith’s top deputy during Smith’s special counsel investigation into President Trump over later-dismissed criminal charges. He’s running his campaign on the grounds that he «spent [his] career standing up to powerful people and holding them accountable, including Donald Trump.»
• Aaron Zelinsky, who served as assistant special counsel to former FBI director Robert Mueller during Russiagate, which evidence now suggests was a «manufactured» Obama-era intelligence fabrication to smear Trump.
• Robert Turkavage, who ran for Congress as a Democrat in New Jersey.
• Sara Zdeb, who worked as chief oversight counsel for Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. Durbin is currently the Senate Judiciary Committee’s ranking member.
• Candice Cook, the former DOJ chief diversity and inclusion officer.
• Sam Bagenstos, a political appointee in both the Biden and Obama administrations with a history of bashing Trump and who also brags about his progressive bona fides on his University of Michigan Law biography page.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot joined «CNN This Morning» on Monday to discuss her fight against teachers unions during the pandemic. (Screenshot/CNN/CNNThisMorning)

UNEARTHED DOJ EMAILS EXPOSE TURMOIL OVER BIDEN-ERA MEMO URGING CRACKDOWN ON PARENTS

«This list is a who’s who of partisan activists, including liberal politicians such as former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who saw crime drastically rise under her tenure, Trump impeachment witness Pamela Karlan, and multiple former disgruntled Biden administration officials, some of whom were directly involved in the weaponization of the Department,» a DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital of the letter.

A former White House official quipped that, «It looks like they passed a petition around the MS NOW green room.»

Former special counsel Jack Smith testifies before the House Judiciary Committee about his investigations into President Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 22, 2026. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

The Trump DOJ says Blanche has the support of law enforcement.

«Law enforcement throughout the nation supports the nomination of Acting Attorney General Blanche, including the Major Cities Chiefs Association, representing police leadership in dozens of major U.S. cities; the International Association of Chiefs of Police, representing tens of thousands of law enforcement leaders worldwide; and the Major County Sheriffs of America, representing hundreds of the nation’s largest sheriffs’ offices,» the spokesperson said.

The letter itself states that as former DOJ employees, the signatories take seriously their «oath to support and defend the Constitution, not the occupant of the White House.»

It complains that Blanche has fired hundreds of DOJ employees, some of whom, they say, were fired for «having worked on cases the President didn’t like.»

«The consequences of Blanche’s attacks on DOJ’s apolitical workforce radiate beyond the halls of Main Justice, affecting the entire country,» the letter says. «They’ve meant that much of the department’s vital work isn’t being done, or isn’t being done as well – leaving communities less safe, Americans’ rights less protected, and our national security more vulnerable.»

A U.S. Justice Department logo in the department’s headquarters briefing room before a news conference in Washington, Jan. 24, 2023. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo)

But the note is eerily reminiscent of another widely-covered stunt that turned out to be a political operation to protect then-presidential candidate Joe Biden during his 2020 election bid.

In that instance, 51 former intelligence officials, including known Trump adversaries former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and former CIA Director John Brennan, penned a letter to the public claiming that the Hunter Biden laptop scandal appeared to be a foreign intelligence operation.

The contents of Hunter Biden’s personal computer, published in October 2020 by the New York Post, contained shocking videos and photos of drug use, lewd sex acts, and sensitive business communications. It eventually was dubbed the «laptop from hell» due to the public relations nightmare it caused for the Biden campaign.

The former intelligence officials immediately jumped to Biden’s defense, claiming the letter had «all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.»

Hunter Biden arrives at the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building on June 6, 2024, in Wilmington, Delaware, for his trial on felony gun charges. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

«Such an operation would be consistent with some of the key methods Russia has used in its now multi-year operation to interfere in our democracy — the hacking (via cyber-operations) and the dumping of accurate information or the distribution of inaccurate or misinformation,» the letter said.

Mainstream news outlets ran with the letter, downplaying the scandal.

By early 2022, many of those same news outlets were forced to report that the emails and files from the laptop were, in fact, authentic after federal investigators looked into the matter.

James Clapper, former director of national intelligence, center, at the White House on Sept. 7, 2022. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Clapper was one of the few signatories who answered for the bogus Russian intelligence claim, but he stood by the letter, claiming the ex-intel crowd never said for sure that the laptop was a Russian operation.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

«Yes, I stand by the statement made AT THE TIME, and would call attention to its 5th paragraph,» he told The New York Post. «I think sounding such a cautionary note AT THE TIME was appropriate.»

So it appears the latest actions are just a repeat of the same playbook Democrats have been using to push their agenda against Trump.

Poco después de que Rusia invadiera Ucrania en febrero de 2022, los líderes occidentales expulsaron a cientos de espías rusos de sus capitales e incluyeron en listas negras a empresas vinculadas al Kremlin. El objetivo de este esfuerzo coordinado era dificultar que Moscú recopilara información de inteligencia y adquiriera equipos como microchips, transmisores y la maquinaria utilizada para fabricar armas. Desde entonces, decenas de esos espías desterrados han aparecido en un lugar inesperado: Japón.

Las débiles leyes de espionaje del país y su floreciente industria de alta tecnología lo han convertido en una pieza clave del esfuerzo bélico ruso. Según estimaciones del gobierno ucraniano, el 90% de los misiles y drones rusos contienen componentes japoneses.

En el centro de la operación en Tokio se encuentra una unidad secreta de inteligencia militar rusa conocida como la 20° Dirección, cuyo papel nunca se ha revelado públicamente. Según funcionarios actuales y antiguos de cinco agencias de inteligencia occidentales, sus oficiales, haciéndose pasar por diplomáticos o empresarios, se dedican a comprar o robar tecnología militar y a introducirla de contrabando en Rusia. Según esas fuentes, el hombre que supervisa las operaciones de la 20° Dirección en Tokio mantiene una identidad falsa como empleado de la aerolínea estatal rusa Aeroflot. Desempeña un papel crucial en el suministro de la maquinaria bélica rusa.

El precio de este esfuerzo es evidente en los ataques nocturnos contra ciudades ucranianas y en la dureza del campo de batalla. Tras cuatro años de guerra, Rusia persiste, en parte, gracias a su acceso continuo a tecnologías como las que adquiere de Japón. Tras el ataque de un misil de crucero ruso Kh-101 que destruyó un edificio residencial en Kiev y mató a 24 personas en mayo, los investigadores examinaron los restos. Según Kiev, descubrieron que el misil había sido guiado por componentes japoneses cuya exportación a Rusia está prohibida en muchos lugares.

Usando documentos confidenciales, registros corporativos y entrevistas con decenas de funcionarios en tres continentes, The New York Times comenzó a reconstruir cómo opera la 20° Dirección. La mayoría de los funcionarios hablaron bajo condición de anonimato porque no estaban autorizados a divulgar información públicamente.

Ucrania ha presentado a Japón pruebas de que su tecnología se usa en ataques rusos. Sin embargo, el gobierno japonés, a pesar de su firme apoyo a Ucrania, ha tardado en actuar. Japón ha sido conocido como un paraíso para el espionaje, en parte debido a las restricciones impuestas tras la Segunda Guerra Mundial por los vencedores, que mantienen débiles a sus servicios de inteligencia. Japón ni siquiera cuenta con una agencia de inteligencia exterior. “Tenemos una sensación de crisis ante esta situación”, dijo Akihisa Shiozaki, legislador del gobernante Partido Liberal Democrático y ex abogado que procesó casos de espionaje industrial.

La cancillería japonesa no respondió a preguntas detalladas sobre espionaje, pero afirmó que el gobierno había trabajado con Occidente para prohibir la exportación de artículos militares a Rusia. “La agresión de Rusia contra Ucrania es un acto indignante que sacude los cimientos mismos del orden internacional”, declaró el ministerio en una nota. Sin embargo, parece que los espías rusos operan justo delante de las narices de las autoridades japonesas.

La oficina de Aeroflot en Tokio está a diez minutos a pie de la sede de la Agencia Nacional de Policía, que investiga el espionaje. Espías occidentales afirman que es allí, en la aerolínea, en el piso 22, donde el hombre de la Dirección 20 en Tokio dirige su letal operación. Su nombre es Maksim Filchenkov.

Rusia necesitaba urgentemente componentes de alta tecnología cuando Filchenkov, de 49 años, asumió su cargo en Tokio en febrero de 2024. La guerra en Ucrania estaba pasando de las batallas de artillería al estilo de la Primera Guerra Mundial a la guerra con drones y los ucranianos tenían ventaja tecnológica. Para mantenerse, Rusia necesitaba nueva tecnología. China podía ayudar, pero para el armamento más avanzado del ejército no había sustituto para los equipos de alta tecnología, las máquinas herramienta y otros componentes que muchas empresas tenían prohibido vender a Rusia.

Es ahí cuando entra en escena Filchenkov, un oficial veterano del espionaje militar ruso, el GRU. Con una misión en Japón a sus espaldas, tenía la experiencia necesaria para encontrar el equipo necesario y trasladarlo a Rusia.

Según consta en registros comerciales y entrevistas, Filchenkov comenzó a establecer relaciones con empresas que transportan mercancías de Japón a Rusia. Funcionarios occidentales han advertido a Japón que este tipo de relaciones ayudan al GRU a comprar tecnología sensible bajo falsas pretensiones y enviarla a Rusia, a veces utilizando registros de envío fraudulentos. Es en este aspecto donde la 20° Dirección destaca. Si bien la historia de la unidad no está clara, los funcionarios indicaron que existía antes de la guerra en Ucrania. Desde que comenzó ese conflicto, añadieron las fuentes, ha sido fundamental para los esfuerzos del Kremlin por obtener tecnología militar.

Los espías del GRU han utilizado los puestos de trabajo en Aeroflot como tapadera desde la era soviética mientras buscaban tecnología occidental. La entrada a la oficina de Aeroflot en Tokio parece la puerta de una prisión, con una estrecha rendija de ventana y un timbre. A inicios de 2026, una mujer de mediana edad, con el pelo rubio y una cruz ortodoxa rusa al cuello, abrió la puerta. Parecía sorprendida de tener visitas.La mujer dijo que Filchenkov no estaba y que no sabía cuándo regresaría. Aeroflot no está específicamente en la lista negra de Japón. Sin embargo, los socios oficiales de Aeroflot siguen activos.

Una de ellas, Proco Air, se anuncia como un “puente entre Japón y Rusia”. Proco alquila espacio de carga en aerolíneas que vuelan a países donde opera Aeroflot, como Sri Lanka o Uzbekistán. Aeroflot recoge la carga allí y la transporta a Rusia. No hay nada ilegal ni inusual en esto. Según los registros de envíos, Japón es el mayor exportador mundial de la tecnología sensible de doble uso que busca el Kremlin. Los contrabandistas no necesitan llevar ese equipo directamente a Rusia; solo necesitan enviarlo a algún lugar dispuesto a vendérselo. Por ejemplo, el principal destino de la tecnología sensible japonesa es Vietnam, que a su vez es el mayor exportador de tecnología sensible a Rusia.