<Tr> <Th> Allies </Th> <Td> Sureños, Sinaloa Cartel, Gulf Cartel, La Familia Michoacana, Mexican Mafia, Los Zetas </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Rivals </Th> <Td> 18th Street gang, Juarez Cartel, Los Negros, Sombra Negra, Tijuana Cartel, Beltrán - Leyva Cartel, The Rascals, Tiny Rascal Gang, Bloods, Crips, Pirus, Fresno Bulldogs, Hoover Boyz, Hoover Criminals, Latin Kings </Td> </Tr> <P> Mara Salvatrucha (MS), also known as MS - 13 (the 13 representing their Sureño affiliation), is an international criminal gang that originated in Los Angeles, California, in the 1980s . The gang later spread to many parts of the continental United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central America, and is active in urban and suburban areas . Most members are of Central American origin, principally El Salvador . </P> <P> Members of MS are characterized by tattoos covering the body, previously including the face, and by the use of their own sign language . They are notorious for their violence and a subcultural moral code based on merciless retribution . This cruelty of the distinguished members of the "Maras" or "Mareros" earned them a path to be recruited by the Sinaloa Cartel battling against Los Zetas in an ongoing drug war in Mexico . Their wide - ranging activities have drawn the attention of the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who have initiated wide - scale raids against known and suspected gang members, arresting hundreds across the country . </P>

What does ms stand for in ms 13