MEXICO CITY: Six migrants died after Mexican soldiers opened fire on a pick-up truck carrying a group of 33 migrants near the Guatemalan border. The incident, which occurred on Tuesday evening, has intensified scrutiny on Mexico’s immigration policies amid growing pressure from the United States to control migrant flows.
According to Mexico’s defense ministry, the shooting took place around 9 p.m. local time while military personnel were conducting a patrol on a highway near Huixtla, approximately 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Tapachula, a key entry point for migrants entering Mexico.
The truck attempted to evade the patrol, and soldiers reported hearing explosions before two officers opened fire on the vehicle.
Four migrants were killed at the scene, while two others succumbed to their injuries later in a hospital. Ten additional migrants were injured in the incident.
The group included people from various countries, including Egypt, Nepal, Cuba, India, and Pakistan, although the ministry did not disclose the nationalities of the deceased.
This incident has sparked outrage among advocacy groups, highlighting the dangerous conditions faced by migrants and the increasingly militarized response to migration in Mexico.
“These events are neither accidental nor isolated; they are a consequence of the restrictive immigration policies that the Mexican state continues to implement,” stated the Collective for the Monitoring of the Southern Border, a coalition of civil society organizations.
The Mexican government is under significant pressure from the US to stem the flow of migrants arriving at the shared border. In recent years, there has been a record surge in the number of people attempting to cross, many fleeing violence and economic hardship in their home countries.
Although illegal border crossings have reportedly decreased in recent months, the situation remains tense as the Biden administration intensifies border security measures.
Tapachula has been a focal point for migrants en route to the US, but the region has also experienced violence due to turf wars between rival drug cartels, complicating the already perilous journey for migrants. In July, violent clashes between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and the Sinaloa Cartel forced around 600 people to flee into Guatemala.
The Mexican defense ministry said that the two soldiers involved have been removed from their posts. Federal prosecutors have been notified, and a military tribunal will conduct its own investigation into the incident.
