\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Former British High Commissioner to Ghana, Jon Benjamin has been dismissed after he pointed an assault rifle at a local embassy employee, it emerged when footage of the incident was posted on social media.<\/p>\n
The Financial Times reported that Jon Benjamin, who is now the British Ambassador to Mexico, was on an official trip to Durango and Sinaloa, two states with strong organized crime groups, when he looked down the gun\u2019s sights at a colleague, who gestured uncomfortably in the five-second clip.<\/p>\n
The firearm presumably belonged to the security detail accompanying the diplomat, who was sacked soon after the incident in April.<\/p>\n
The video was released by an anonymous account on X, formerly known as Twitter. \u201cIn a context of daily killings in Mexico by drug dealers, he dares to joke,\u201d wrote the account.<\/p>\n
Mexico has seen more than 30,000 homicides a year for the last six years \u2014 one of the highest homicide rates in Latin America \u2014 as organized crime groups fight to control territory and businesses across the country.<\/p>\n
Benjamin is no longer listed as the ambassador on the UK government website.<\/p>\n
He became UK ambassador to Mexico in 2021, having previously held posts in Chile, Turkey, Ghana, Indonesia, and the US over a career of almost four decades.<\/p>\n
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment by the Guardian, but told the Financial Times: \u201cWe are aware of this incident and have taken appropriate action. Where internal issues do arise the FCDO has robust HR processes to address them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Diplomatic relations between the UK and Mexico, Latin America\u2019s second-largest economy, have tended to be cordial and uncontroversial. They have been negotiating a new free trade agreement since 2022.<\/p>\n
This Sunday Mexican voters appear all but certain to elect Claudia Sheinbaum as their first female president, taking over from her popular predecessor of the same party, Andr\u00e9s Manuel L\u00f3pez Obrador.<\/p>\n
The campaign trail has been blighted by violence, with more than 30 candidates killed and hundreds more dropping out as organized crime groups vie to install friendly leaders. On Wednesday \u2013 the final day of the campaign \u2013 a gunman filmed himself shooting dead the opposition mayoral candidate Jos\u00e9 Alfredo Cabrera in the town of Coyuca de Ben\u00edtez, Guerrero, before in turn being gunned down by bodyguards.<\/p>\n
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