MEXICO CITY – At least 16 people were killed and eight injured in an attack on a drug rehabilitation center in the northern Mexican city of Chihuahua on Wednesday.
The incident took place in the city of Chihuahua, the capital of the state of the same name, at around 9:50pm local time, local media reported.
Masked men broke into the Familias Unidas centre and opened fire on those inside. Witnesses said the attackers wore military-style clothes and carried assault rifles.
Five men and one woman are in serious condition, according to state prosecutors cited by El Universal.
The security forces erected checkpoints around the city but have so far not been able to track down those responsible.
Police say the motive for the attack is not yet clear.
The state of Chihuahua, which borders the US, has seen some of the worst violence associated with Mexico’s battle against drug trafficking.
At least half a dozen attacks have taken place at drug rehabilitation centers in the state over the past decade.
The attacks are generally conducted by gang members settling scores with rivals hiding inside the centers.
More than 200,000 people have died or disappeared amid violence across the country since the Mexican government launched its war on the cartels in 2006.
