Fugitive Mexican drugs lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman suffered face and leg injuries as he narrowly evaded a police operation to recapture him, officials have confirmed.

The operation happened in north-west Mexico in recent days but few details have been released.

Guzman, head of the Sinaloa cartel, escaped from a high-security prison in July through a specially dug tunnel.

His escape was an embarrassment for Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.

The government said in a statement that efforts to recapture Guzman had been focused in the north-west of the country, not far from Guzman's native Sinaloa state.

"As a result of these actions, and to avoid his capture, in recent days, the fugitive engaged in a hasty retreat, which, according to the information received, caused him injuries to one leg and the face," the statement said.

"It's important to clarify that these injuries were not a product of a direct clash," it added, without giving further details.

The statement added: "The security cabinet continues to conduct all actions that will allow the recapture of this criminal."

Mexico has arrested several prison officials since Guzman's escape.

Investigators said he had inside help to flee through a tunnel that ran 1.5km from under a shower in his cell to outside the prison.

After his escape, Guzman took to Twitter to taunt the police and insult President Pena Nieto.

Guzman was first arrested in Guatemala in 1993 and spent nearly a decade in another maximum-security Mexican jail before escaping, reportedly in a laundry basket.

He was on the run for 13 years before being held again in 2014 after a series of high-profile arrests of associates and covert surveillance by the US authorities.

(BBC)