More than 300 people have been arrested in a series of drug raids targeting a Mexican drug cartel operating in the US, American officials have said.

The two-day operation, which involved thousands of police officers in 19 US states, is the latest aimed at the cartel known as La Familia.

It was part of Project Coronado, which has led to almost 1,200 arrests over four years, officials said.

The US attorney general said the cartel had been dealt a "significant blow".

La Familia, which is based in the western Mexican state of Michoacan, has been accused of carrying out bloody attacks on Mexican security forces.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8321190.stm