Rights teams warn that migrants and asylum seekers journeying north via Mexico usually expertise violence.
The Mexican navy has revealed that troopers opened fireplace this week on a truck carrying dozens of migrants, killing six individuals.
Mexico’s Ministry of Defence introduced in a press launch on Wednesday that the incident came about close to the city of Huixtla within the southern state of Chiapas the night earlier than, on October 1.
Within the rapid aftermath of the taking pictures, “navy personnel recognized 33 migrants of Egyptian, Nepalese, Cuban, Indian, Pakistani and Arab nationality, of whom 4 had died, 12 injured and 17 unhurt”, in accordance with the press launch.
It added that two extra individuals died after being transported to an area hospital.
The taking pictures came about about 41km (25 miles) from town of Tapachula on the border with Guatemala, an space the place many migrants and asylum seekers start their perilous journey north via Mexico.
Immigrant rights teams say that violence and abuse by the hands of Mexican regulation enforcement and felony teams are frequent.
The Defence Ministry says that the 2 troopers who opened fireplace have been faraway from their posts. The case has been referred to federal prosecutors in addition to the navy’s personal tribunal.
The incident reportedly came about at round 8:50pm on Tuesday (02:50 GMT, Wednesday), when troopers observed a pick-up-like car shifting at a excessive velocity.
The press launch explains the truck “evaded navy personnel” and was adopted by two automobiles just like these utilized by felony teams within the space. The 2 troopers opened fireplace after “listening to detonations”, the Defence Ministry stated with out providing additional particulars.
The navy stated it’s working with Mexico’s Ministry of Overseas Affairs to coordinate with embassies representing the international locations of the victims. The 17 migrants unhurt within the taking pictures have been handed over to Mexican migration authorities.
Critics say migrants and asylum seekers making the journey north in the direction of america usually pay the value of escalating regulation enforcement efforts.
The US authorities has pushed Mexico to extend enforcement efforts to stem irregular migration northwards, although the difficulty has been some extent of rigidity between the 2 international locations.
Former Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, as an example, criticised US efforts to construct a wall alongside the 2 international locations’ shared border.
The administration of US President Joe Biden has additionally moved to limit access to asylum alongside the border with Mexico, a transfer broadly denounced by immigrant rights teams.
Final 12 months, the Worldwide Group for Migration named the trail to the US-Mexico border the “deadliest land route for migrants worldwide”, citing dangers from the surroundings and felony teams, amongst different threats.