US government employees have been ordered to limit travel in Nogales, a Mexican border city, to essential movements during daylight hours after officials received information about an unspecified threat.
The US Consulate General in Nogales issued the security alert on Saturday, 5 September, warning that government activities in and travel to the city had been restricted. The notice did not identify the nature of the threat or indicate whether a specific incident had taken place.
“Due to threat information, U.S. government activities in, and travel to, Nogales have been restricted to essential movement during daylight hours only,” the consulate said.
The warning also applied to US citizens in the area, who were advised to remain alert, seek shelter if an incident occurred, inform relatives of their safety, follow instructions from Mexican law enforcement and monitor local media.
Sonora’s state security authorities said they had contacted US consular officials after the alert was issued but had not been given details establishing a concrete danger to the wider public. They said preventive security operations would continue in Nogales and elsewhere in the state.
The US State Department classifies Sonora as a Level 3 “Reconsider Travel” area because of risks including crime and terrorism. Its existing guidance restricts US government employees in parts of the state and limits travel in Nogales, including a ban on taxis, public buses and ride-hailing services.
Travel between Nogales and the state capital, Hermosillo, is also limited to daylight hours and Federal Highway 15 under the current advisory, which warns of security incidents and occasional armed carjackings along the route.
US citizens in or near Nogales have been urged to take the latest warning seriously, although officials have not said how long the restrictions will remain in place.
