Mexico puts military in charge of customs operations

Mexico’s president said Friday he is putting the army in charge of customs at border crossings and seaports to combat corruption and the massive smuggling of drugs and precursor chemicals.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador made the announcement during a visit to the Pacific coast port of Manzanillo, where some of the biggest multi-ton shipments of drug and illicit chemicals have been seized over the last decade.

It was the latest in a series of new roles that López Obrador has entrusted to the nation’s armed forces, which are . . .