Mexico set a new record for the number of homicides recorded during the first half of the year, with the number of deaths rising 5.3% compared to the same time period last year.
17,608 people were killed in the first half of 2019, as cartel and gang violence continue to proliferate across Mexico. The number marks the most since records began in 1997. Last year, 16,714 people were killed during that same period, according to the Associated Press.
The country, long plagued by brutal violence stemming from drug trafficking, averages about 100 murders per day. But it is unclear what exactly is behind this year’s uptick in violence, which surpassed even the peak year of Mexico’s drug war in 2011.
“I could give you 10 potential, plausible reasons, but the truth is we don’t know, and that is perhaps the biggest problem,” security analyst Alejandro Hope said of the 5.3% increase. “There is very little systematic research that would allow us to conclude what is really happening.”
In addition to increased homicides, other types of crime such as extortion have reportedly become more frequent and more violent.
