Mexico City: Sons of jailed drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman were likely behind an armed attack on a military convoy that left five soldiers dead and 10 wounded on Friday, a senior Mexican security official said.

The attack took place in the early morning on the edge of the city of Culiacan in northern Sinaloa state, along Mexico's Pacific coast, the home base of the Sinaloa Cartel, whose former leader Guzman was recaptured in January.

The convoy was transporting a detainee, Julio Ortiz, when it was ambushed by armed men hurling grenades which caused two of the convoy's vehicles to burst into flames, said General Alfonso Duarte, the regional defence ministry commander in charge of Sinaloa.

Ortiz was arrested in El Chapo's hometown of Badiraguato in Sinaloa. Ortiz was allegedly involved in a conflict over control of drug crops pitting El Chap's brother Aureliano Guzman, against Alfredo Beltran, a leader of the rival Beltran Leyva cartel.

Ortiz was taken alive by the attackers, but it was unclear whether he was an ally or enemy of the armed men.

"We aren't sure [about the identity of the attackers], but it's very probable that they work for the sons of El Chapo," General Duarte told reporters in a joint news conference with Sinaloa Governor Mario Lopez.

The governor said that numerous armoured trucks were behind the ambush.

"It was a cowardly attack since the soldiers, unfortunately, didn't have a chance to defend themselves," said Lopez.

According to the Associated Press, the pre-dawn ambush was the worst attack on military personnel since 2015, when drug cartel gunmen in the state of Jalisco shot down an army helicopter with a rocket launcher, killing 10 people.

Friday's attack was unusual for the Sinaloa cartel. Some believe El Chapo's sons are now running the gang and have changed the rules of engagement long practised by their father. However others say El Chapo's longtime partner Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada is in control.

President Enrique Pena Nieto promised to bring those responsible for the attack to justice in a post on his Twitter page.

El Chapo was re-captured earlier this year following his brazen escape from a maximum security prison in July 2015.

He is currently in prison in Ciudad Juarez, close to the US border, awaiting extradition to the United States.

Reuters, AP