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72 bodies found on Mexico ranch

Updated: 2010-08-26 13:44

Troops discovered at least 72 bodies, including those of 14 women, at a ranch in northeastern Mexico after a clash with gunmen within kilometers of the US border, the Mexican military said early Wednesday.

The gruesome find came after a shootout between troops and suspected drug traffickers near the town of San Fernando, at Tamaulipas state, which borders Texas, in which one member of the military and three gunmen were killed, according to the Mexican Navy.

Besides the exceptionally high number of dead, the incident is also significant in that it underscores differences in law enforcement on both sides of the US-Mexico border, which sees 300 million crossings annually.

Mexican officials have long criticized the US for not doing more to stop the purchase of weapons in southern states like Texas and Arizona, which have loose gun laws, by drug gangs.

At the same time, Mexico has also lashed out at its northern neighbor for not doing more to stop domestic drug use. In recent years, Mexican cartels have replaced Colombian drug gangs in terms of bringing narcotics such as cocaine into the US, in part because of American drug interdiction policies.

Tamaulipas is the scene of brutal confrontations between the Gulf drug cartel and its notorious former allies, the Zetas, as they fight for control of lucrative smuggling routes into the US.

The navy said "the lifeless bodies of 72 people were found" after the military went to the ranch when a man suffering from gunshot wounds approached a nearby military checkpoint, saying he had been attacked on the ranch by drug gang members.

The operation, which included military air support, netted one "underage suspect", but the rest of the gunmen who were not killed managed to escape.

The military seized 21 rifles, about 6,600 rounds of ammunition, and four trucks including one bearing Ministry of Defense markings, the navy said.

Mass graves have been turning up with alarming frequency in Mexico's drug war, which has claimed the lives of an estimated 28,000 people since 2006, despite a military show of force in Mexican cities by the government of President Felipe Calderon.

On June 7, 55 bodies were uncovered in a mass grave outside a mine in the southern state of Guerrero, the largest find of its kind in Mexico. Then, on July 23, 51 bodies were found in a residential area on the outskirts of Monterrey, the capital of the northern state of Nuevo Leon.

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72 bodies found on Mexico ranch

About the broadcaster:

72 bodies found on Mexico ranch

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.