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Iguala. — Authorities have found mass graves with the charred remains of up to 20 people in the restive southern Mexican state of Guerrero, at a time when police are scouring the area for nearly four dozen missing students after a rash of violence.
The remains were found on a hillside on the outskirts of the town of Iguala in six graves, which were still fresh, a local official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The identities of the dead were not immediately clear, two officials added.
Guerrero Attorney-General Inaky Blanco told reporters in Iguala on Saturday that the remains would be sent to Mexico’s forensic service to determine whether or not the corpses were those of the missing students.
He declined to say how many graves or corpses had been found.
“In the next few hours we will determine the cause of death and the number of bodies,” a spokesperson for the state Attorney-General’s Office said.
Iguala is about 193km south of Mexico City in the increasingly violent state of Guerrero, the site of clashes involving students, police and armed men last week. At least six people were killed in a spate of incidents.
Guerrero Governor Angel Aguirre said earlier last week that photos showed police had taken some of the students away.
Several hundred students protested on Saturday night in front of Aguirre’s residence in the state capital of Chilpancingo, expressing anger that some of their classmates may be among the bodies found in the graves.
A car was overturned and several petrol bombs were hurled at the residence perimeter, where security outposts were lightly damaged. — Reuters
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