Seven people were killed and five others seriously wounded in a shooting at a bar in Tula, central Mexico, on Saturday, authorities said.
Police reported that four victims were found dead at the scene, while three more died later in hospital. Witnesses told police that armed men stormed the La Resaka bar, located in a working-class neighborhood, in the early hours of Saturday.
Federal and state security forces launched an operation in response, but no suspects have been apprehended so far.
Tula, located in Hidalgo state, is known for gangs involved in the trafficking of stolen fuel, although mass killings in the area are rare. The Hidalgo State Security Bureau said it had observed tensions between rival gangs in Tula prior to the attack. Local media reported that disputes had intensified following the arrest of a suspected local gang leader.
Since the start of Mexico’s cartel crackdown in 2006, criminal violence—mostly linked to drug trafficking—has claimed around 480,000 lives, with more than 120,000 people still missing.
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