Mexico identifies 12 slain as federal agents http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090714/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_mexico_drug_war <!-- end: .tools --> <!-- end: .hd --> Play Video <cite class="caption"> Reuters – Mexico drugs arrest sparks violence </cite> <!-- end #main-media --> Play Video Video:Shootout in Mexico, three found hiding <cite>KENS 5 - TV San Antonio</cite> Play Video Video:Peaceful battle continues despite deaths <cite>KTVK 3TV Phoenix</cite> <!-- end .primary-media --> <cite class="caption">Reuters – Bystanders look at a crime scene where a man was gunned down in the border city of Ciudad Juarez June …</cite> <!-- end .secondary-media --> <!-- end .related-media --> <cite class="vcard"> By GUSTAVO RUIZ, Associated Press Writer Gustavo Ruiz, Associated Press Writer </cite> – <abbr title="2009-07-14T12:47:41-0700" class="recenttimedate">1 hr 34 mins ago</abbr> <!-- end .byline --> MORELIA, Mexico – Twelve people tortured, slain and dumped along a mountain road in a drug-plagued Mexican state were off-duty federal agents, an official said Tuesday. It is one of boldest attacks on federal forces since President Felipe Calderon launched his national war on drugs. Mexico's national security spokesman Monte Alejandro Rubido said the 11 men and one woman were investigating crime in President Felipe Calderon's home state of Michoacan, which has been a center of his crackdown on organized crime. They were ambushed by members of the La Familia drug cartel, Rubido said. Their bodies were found piled up along a mountain highway late Monday near the town of La Huacana. Michoacan state prosecutor J. Jesus Montejano initially said Tuesday that they were soldiers, but the army denied that. His office later acknowledged the mistake. Initial reports indicated the victims were likely killed over the weekend, when federal agents arrested Arnoldo Rueda Medina, a chief of operations of the Michoacan-based La Familia cartel. Police say his arrest Saturday set off a string of brazen attacks against federal forces that left six federal police officers and two soldiers dead. Heavily armed gunmen threw grenades and fired on federal police stations and hotels where the agents were staying in three states. "Without a doubt La Familia is known for its violence ... we shouldn't be surprised by their reaction," Rubido said. Federal forces arrested politicians in several of those cities, including La Huacana, during an unprecedented sweep in May. Seven mayors, one former mayor and the state prosecutor remain jailed accused of protecting the La Familia cartel. Since Calderon took office in December 2006, he has sent more than 45,000 troops to drug hot spots. More than 11,000 people have been killed in drug violence. Michoacan has been wracked by a wave of killings and arrests in recent weeks. On Tuesday, three bodies were found in the Michoacan town of Nuevo Urecho.
11,000 killed since Dec. 06'. That's about two and a half years. I wonder when the violence is going to start spilling over into our country with those types of numbers. Makes the war in Iraq look pale in comparison.
