Armed gunmen opened fire and killed 13 high school and college students in what seems to be a case of mistaken identities. The deaths occurred in Ciudad Juarez, one of the deadliest cities in the world located across the border from El Paso, Texas, in the midst of turf battles between powerful drug cartels.
Witnesses and family members believed that the victims had no ties to the drug cartels and that the attack must have been prompted by false information. One witness said he was just outside when the gunfire broke out and that the party was an innocuous gathering of friends who must have been targeted incorrectly.
"It must have been a huge mistake," said Martha Lujan, who lives at the housing complex where the shootings took place late Saturday night.
Ciudad Juarez is a city of 1.3 million people that is home to several drug cartel bosses who are battling for turf as thousands of troops and federal police try to stop them. More than 2,250 people were killed there in 2009 and more than 15,000 people have been killed in Mexico in the past three years in cartel-related violence.
What can be done to stop the violence caused by these drug lords in Mexico?
Squishable Pre-Dawn Open Thread
1 hour ago
4 comments:
I'm really starting to lose respect and support for this country beyond the reasons already given here in the article. I was listening to NPR a couple of days ago and DEA agents were investigating into some drug cartel in Guadalajara, Mexico. They were eventually beaten, tortured, raped, and murdered. The U.S. government asked the Mexican government to cooperate and provide credible information in hopes of uncovering and properly punishing the suspected perpetrators. Well, you know the rest. The Mexican government refused. I wonder why? Maybe they're just too similar to Afghanistan? Anyway, I know they're HUGE trading partners, but unless it's business, these people DO NOT deserve any hospitality from the American government. I'm talking about with regards to the Mexican government and ESPECIALLY the drug cartels, not Mexican citizens.
This is so sad. I agree. I feel like the Mexican government should really put in a greater amount of effort to really stop all this crime that is happening in their country. This way, less innocent people can be harmed each year, and they can actually be doing themselves a favor too. On the other hand, this really gives them a bad reputation anyway.
I also agree that it gives them a bad reputation... I think something definitely needs to be done. I mean, how can so many innocent people just die because of nothing. The government needs to step in, or something. Otherwise, who knows what will happen next?
The situation does look very bad. That killing of 13 young students is very tragic, but I doubt that there will be much reparation for it. Even though the police are trying to crack down the drug cartel situation, nothing seems to be getting better. I think even the police are becoming scared of the drug lords. I heard on the news that a police chief was brutally murdered after crossing a drug gang. This makes me think that there must be a great deal of fear among police officers and maybe even some "crooked cops." I think the Mexican government may need to look into sending troops to deal with this situation.
-Henry Zhang
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