Mexico 2010 drug murders hit 15,000

Four police officers and a doctor have been killed in Mexico in what appears to be another coordinated attack by gunmen linked to drug cartels.

Such killings in the northern city of Monterrey are becoming almost a daily occurrence and arguably less shocking.

What is shocking, is that as 2010 draws to a close nearly 15,000 people are estimated to have been murdered in drugs related violence in Mexico this year alone – a record which dwarfs even the number killed in Afghanistan – a country officially at war.

Such statistics have inevitably led to increasing questions about the Mexican government’s policy towards the country’s cartels.

In 2006, President Felipe Calderon declared war on Mexico’s drug barons. But year on year the violence has increased. Many will hope 2011 will be different, but for the moment that’s all it is, hope.

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