Mexican soldiers killed six after opening fire on a truck carrying immigrants Immigration News

Rights groups warn that migrants and asylum seekers heading north through Mexico often face violence.

The Mexican military revealed that soldiers opened fire this week on a truck carrying a large number of immigrants, killing six people.

The Mexican Ministry of Defense announced in a press release on Wednesday that the incident occurred near the town of Huixtla in the southern state of Chiapas the night before, on October 1.

After this incident, “the soldiers identified 33 migrants from the country of Egypt, Nepalese, Cuban, Indian, Pakistani and Arab, of which 4 died, 12 were injured and 17 were unharmed”, according to the media.

It added that two others died after being taken to a local hospital.

The shooting happened 41 kilometers from the city of Tapachula on the border with Guatemala, where many migrants and asylum seekers begin their perilous journey north through Mexico.

Immigrant rights groups say violence and abuse of Mexicans by criminal gangs is common.

The Ministry of Defense says the two soldiers who opened fire have been removed from their posts. The case has been referred to federal prosecutors and a military court.

The incident was reported to have happened at around 08:50 on Tuesday night (02:50 GMT, Wednesday), when the soldiers saw a van moving at high speed.

The press release describes the truck as “the soldiers fled” and was followed by two vehicles similar to those used by criminal gangs in the area. Two soldiers opened fire after “hearing an explosion,” the Defense Ministry said without giving further details.

The military said it is working with the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs to coordinate with embassies representing the affected countries. The 17 migrants who were not injured in the incident were handed over to Mexican immigration authorities.

Critics say migrants and asylum seekers making the journey north to the United States often pay the price for enforcement efforts.

The US government has forced Mexico to step up efforts to curb irregular migration to the north, although the issue has been a point of contention between the two countries.

Former Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, for example, criticized American efforts to build a wall along the shared border of the two countries.

US President Joe Biden’s administration has also moved to block access to asylum along the Mexican border, a move widely criticized by immigration rights groups.

Last year, the International Organization for Migration called the route to the US-Mexico border “the world’s deadliest migrant route”, citing environmental risks and criminal groups, among other threats.