#NoMoreGuns: Homicides with Firearms Reach Record Highs in Mexico VOA News
go to original November 16, 2016

A sign warning drivers that firearms and ammunition are prohibited in Mexico is seen at the U.S.-Mexico border in Nogales, Arizona (Reuters)

Murder by firearms in Mexico have hit record levels under the government of President Enrique Pena Nieto as the death toll from gang violence worsens, a study shows.

The months of July to September have seen the highest murder tolls since Pena Nieto took office in December 2012 pledging to curb gang violence that rose sharply under his predecessor.

August and September, the latest months for which data are available, were also the worst two months for deaths by firearm ever registered, according to the National Citizen Observatory (ONC), a civil group monitoring justice and security in Mexico.

For the first half of 2016, Mexico’s murder rate rose over 15 percent compared to last year. This has prompted concern that the country’s recent gains in quelling the drug war might be slowing down. (CCTV America)

All told, there were 1,238 murders by firearm in August and 1,228 in September, the ONC noted, basing its findings on official data. Detailed statistics published by Mexican authorities on security stretch back to 1997.

...Mexico has been convulsed by violence since former President Felipe Calderon sent in the armed forces to take on the drug cartels after he took office in December 2006. Well over 100,000 people have died in cartel-related violence since then.

The most violent year on record in Mexico was 2011, and this year is on track to be the worst since at least 2012.

Read the rest at VOA News

Related: Vigilante Kills 2 Thieves in Mexico; 6th Death in 2 Weeks (Associated Press)

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