CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico — Gunmen stormed a birthday party late Friday and killed 13 young people, just months after a similar massacre shocked the nation, authorities said.
More than 15 people were injured, including a 9-year-old girl. Some were in critical condition, with head wounds.
The attack took place in the working-class neighborhood of Horizontes Sur, not far from Villas Salvarcar, site of a massacre of 15 young people last January, an attack that galvanized the nation.
A week ago Sunday, seven people were killed when gunmen stormed another Juarez home.
In the latest attack, the gunmen arrived Friday after 11 p.m. in three cars, Chihuahua state authorities said. The gunmen, described as teenagers, secured the area, blocking traffic, and stormed into the house and opened fire. Those killed ranged in age from 13 to 30, including a pregnant woman.
The motive was unknown, and no arrests were made.
State and federal officials, including President Felipe Calderon, condemned the attack and vowed to find the culprits.
“”With sadness and profound indignation, the federal government energetically repudiates the assassination of several youths in Ciudad Juarez,”” Calderon said, via a message on Twitter.
The words didn’t inspire much hope among the stunned residents, some of whom walked in silence. All declined to give their full names for fear of reprisals.
“”There’s no end in sight,”” said Miguel, as he stared at the blood-filled scene. “”This is like living in hell.””
Most killings go unsolved in Mexico.
The latest killings in this grim city across the border from El Paso, Texas, carried eerie reminders of the earlier massacre of teens. On Jan. 31, gunmen stormed a birthday party in the nearby neighborhood of Villas Salvarcar.
The killing of 15 youths in January prompted the Calderon administration to vow “”never again.”” The government pledged new funding to improve law enforcement, build infrastructure projects and expand job and educational opportunities.
The new strategy, in step with support from the U.S. government, was aimed at addressing issues that many believe push the city’s young people into organized crime. Critics say some improvements have been made, but much remains to be done.
Meanwhile, a turf war between the Sinaloa and Juarez drug cartels continues unabated.
For the year, nearly 2,600 people have been killed in Juarez, 253 of them just in October, including 25 on Friday, according to New Mexico State University Librarian Molly Molloy, who keeps a daily log of the slayings in Juarez.
At the scene of Friday’s massacre, police said they found more than 100 bullet casings from high-powered weapons commonly used by drug gangs. Local media showed images of bodies strewn among cars parked in the garage of the house, blood splattered on the walls and a blood-stained white baseball cap.