11 Found Dead, Including a Boy, After Gunmen Sprayed Bullets at Party in Mexico’s Jalisco State

By Joshua Summers Mar 01 2021, 01:14 AM EST

Eleven people, including a boy, were killed when unidentified gunmen riding in a truck in the western state of Jalisco in Mexico opened fire on Saturday.

According to Reuters, Jalisco is one of the epicenters of Mexico's drug-related warfare, and home to the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

In a statement, the state prosecutor's office said police found the bullet-ridden bodies of 10 men, who were attending a party, on the sidewalk in front of a home in Emiliano Zapata street at Tonala, a municipality in the Guadalajara area.

DW reported that a boy's body was also found inside the residence, while another boy and a woman were being treated for injuries at a local hospital. Other details were not immediately known.

President of Mexico Vows to Curb Rising Violence

According to DW, when Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador took office in 2018, part of his commitment was reducing entrenched violence. However, he continued to wrestle with mass killings and tens of thousands of homicides yearly.

Almost 100 murders are being recorded every day not only in Jalisco but across the country with a population of 126 million people. DW further noted that more than 82,000 people have disappeared since the war on drugs began in the country in 2006.

According to a BBC report, for many, 2009 to 2011 had a record of Mexico's chilling memories since it was the period of ferocious violence between powerful drug cartels. Many of the communities were placed under curfew as shootouts for territorial control were almost ordinary.

However, the report noted that the monthly homicide rate in 2020 has become worse, noting that the bloodshed that happened in 2019 and 2020 showed that Mexico may have already slid back into a familiar pattern of violence even though some regions are still under lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Mexican security analyst Alejandro Hope told BBC that security forces situated in the country were already too weak due to the violence that takes place and being overwhelmed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Mexico's Long War on Drugs, Crimes, and Cartels

Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) said even after more than a decade that former President Felipe Calderon launched a crackdown on drug cartels, violence continues to rage in Mexico.

The CFR noted that authorities continued to wage a deadly battle against drug cartels for over a decade, but with limited success. The CFR added that thousands of people, including students, politicians, and journalists, die in the conflict annually, making the country witness over 300,000 homicide cases since 2006.

The CFR said the United States has already extended their help, providing Mexico with financial aid to improve their security forces and judicial system.

A U.S. News report said former Jalisco Governor Aristoteles Sandoval was shot dead at a restaurant in Puerto Vallarta's beach town last December.

Earlier this month, Mexican police have also found 18 plastic bags full of human remains at the Guadalajara metropolitan area within the western state of Jalisco.