Shooting refocuses U.S. attention on Mexican drug war
Top news: Gunmen believed to be linked to Mexican drug cartels killed a pregnant U.S. consulate worker and her husband as well as the Mexican husband of another consulate worker in an ambush on their cars in Ciudad Juarez on Saturday. Several children were also wounded. The deaths occurred in the midst of a particularly bloody weekend for Mexico, in which at least 50 people were killed throughout the country in gang-related violence.
In a statement President Barack Obama pledged that U.S. and Mexican authorities would "work tirelessly to bring their killers to justice." FBI agents have been sent to Ciudad Juarez to assist in the investigation. It is rare for U.S. officials to be targeted in Mexico's drug violence, although cartels did lob a grenade at the U.S. consulate in Monterrey in 2008. The motivation for this weekend's attack is still unknown.
Authorities say the U.S.-Mexican border has become increasingly violent in recent weeks thanks to the breakdown of an alliance between two rival cartels. Dozens, including several journalists, have been killed and cartels have even set up "checkpoints" on roads to search for their rivals.
More than 18,000 people have been killed throughout Mexico since President Felipe Calderon launched an antidrug offensive in 2006. Despite critics who fear the drug war is becoming a quagmire, Calderon's efforts are enthusiastically supported by Washington which has provided more than $1 billion in aid.
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In a statement President Barack Obama pledged that U.S. and Mexican authorities would "work tirelessly to bring their killers to justice." FBI agents have been sent to Ciudad Juarez to assist in the investigation. It is rare for U.S. officials to be targeted in Mexico's drug violence, although cartels did lob a grenade at the U.S. consulate in Monterrey in 2008. The motivation for this weekend's attack is still unknown.
Authorities say the U.S.-Mexican border has become increasingly violent in recent weeks thanks to the breakdown of an alliance between two rival cartels. Dozens, including several journalists, have been killed and cartels have even set up "checkpoints" on roads to search for their rivals.
More than 18,000 people have been killed throughout Mexico since President Felipe Calderon launched an antidrug offensive in 2006. Despite critics who fear the drug war is becoming a quagmire, Calderon's efforts are enthusiastically supported by Washington which has provided more than $1 billion in aid.
War of the worlds: A satirical fake news broadcast about a Russian invasion caused public panic in Georgia.
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-By Joshua Keating |  |
Jesus Alcazar/AFP/Getty Images
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