13 police officers and officials taken hostage at a protest in Mexico

13 police officers and officials have been taken hostage during a violent protest in southern Mexico. This was announced by the Minister of Public Security, Rosa Icela Rodríguez, on Tuesday. The Los Ardillos crime syndicate was behind Monday’s protest in Guerrero state, Rodríguez said. The group is demanding the release of two of its leaders, who were previously arrested with ammunition and drugs.

Guerrero is home to numerous criminal organizations involved in drug trafficking, extortion and kidnapping. Nearly nine years ago, 43 students at a teacher training college in the state were kidnapped by corrupt police officers and handed over to the Guerreros Unidos drug cartel. Only pieces of bone from three of the young men were later found and identified. The background has not yet been completely cleared up.

Thousands of residents from various locations in the region paralyzed Guerrero’s capital, Chilpancingo, on Monday. They blocked a highway, used violence against security forces and hijacked an armored police car, breaking into the grounds of the local government palace. 300 officers were deployed, but avoided a confrontation.

The government prefers dialogue, but will not be blackmailed, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said at his daily press conference on Tuesday. According to Minister Rodríguez, residents were forced to join the protests. Twelve police officers and members of the National Guard were injured during Monday’s protest, local authorities said. The highway was closed again on Tuesday. (sda/dpa)