Homicides in Mexico rose 23 percent in 2010

The number of homicides in Mexico rose by nearly a quarter in 2010 compared to the year before as the drug war intensified across the country, Mexican statisticians said Thursday. The National Institute of Statistics and Geography recorded 24,374 homicides over the course of last year, a 23 percent increase from 19,803 in 2009. Last year's figure represented 22 killings for every 100,000 residents in the country. Many but not all of the homicides were committed by organized crime organizations, the institute told The Associated Press. Violence has risen in many Mexican regions as a result of drug trafficking and other organized criminal activity. President Felipe Calderon's office has said that more than 15,000 homicides in 2010 were attributed to organized crime. According to the statistics institute, the U.S.-bordering state of Chihuahua saw the highest number of homicides with 4,747. Sinaloa, in northwestern Mexico, registered 2,505...more