Mexico: 9 Dead in Shooting Clashes in Morelos

On Morning, at least nine people were killed and four others wounded in a series of shooting clashes in the city of Cuernavaca, capital of the state of Morelos.

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The Cuernavaca Secretariat of Citizen Protection said that among the dead were two police officers who responded to a call reporting a shooting attack against two civilians who were drinking alcohol in the street.

The events began in the Altavista neighborhood, "where a group of armed men aboard three vehicles... attacked some civilians who were drinking in the street and tried to take another one. The result was one person was killed and another was injured."

When the police arrived, they were met with gunfire, which initiated a chase of the alleged aggressors through several neighborhoods and led to "securing the Cherokee van with a dead driver and a motorcycle with an injured driver," the statement read.

The text reads, "Shooting in Cuernavaca with multiple victims. Deployment of Federal and State Forces protect the area."

"Unfortunately in the line of duty two policemen were injured and unfortunately two (others) lost their lives," it said.

Another van was secured in the Tlaltenango neighborhood, "with five civilians aboard, armed with vests and a communication radio, all dead," the statement added. 

Cuernavaca, which is located about 50 miles south of Mexico City, has been the scene of violence between rival criminal groups, the Los Angeles Times recalled.