13 law enforcement officers killed in Mexico ambush
Thirteen Mexican police officers and investigators have been killed in an ambush as they traveled through a rural region – marking the latest attack on law enforcement by brazen criminal groups.
Eight state police officers and five members of the state’s investigative police force died in the ambush in the municipality of Coatepec Harinas, 125km (78 miles) south-west of Mexico City in Mexico state on Thursday afternoon, according to officials.
The convoy was carrying out patrols in the region, precisely to fight the criminal groups that operate in the area," said Rodrigo Martinez Celis, head of the state Public Safety Department.
Soldiers, marines, and National Guard troops were combing the area by land and from the air looking for the killers, said Martinez Celis.
Last year, gunmen wounded the Mexico City police chief and killed two of his bodyguards and a bystander when they opened fire on his convoy as it drove through an affluent residential neighborhood of the capital.
The National Guard, army, navy, and intelligence have joined an operation to find those responsible for the attack, the spokesperson added.
According to media reports, one more attack took place on Thursday in the neighboring municipality of Almoloya de Alquisiras, with four law enforcement officers having been killed in the incident.
Last year was the deadliest year for police since the group began tracking deaths in 2018, with at least 524 officers killed.
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