The wave of drug-related violence in Mexico left more than 50 people dead in a single day, Mexican media reported on Tuesday.
The daily El Universal reported that Monday was the most violent day of the year so far and counted 57 deaths linked to organised crime. A tally by the daily La Jornada said 54 people suffered violent deaths on Monday.
El Universal in a broader count noted that 4,410 people have died in Mexico since January in incidents linked to organized crime activity.
On Monday, the violence affected eight Mexican states: Chihuahua, Baja California, Durango, Guerrero, Nuevo Leon, Quintana Roo, Sinaloa and Sonora. The northern state of Chihuahua suffered the most deaths, with a total of 33, including eight at a single bar in Ciudad Juarez.
Despite an average of close to 20 violent deaths per day, Mexican Attorney General Eduardo Medina Mora insists violent deaths remain below their 1994 level, and below the rate in other nations in the Americas.
Medina Mora said that in 1994 there were 18 murders per 100,000 residents in Mexico. He added that in 2008, with a total of 6,290 violent deaths, the rate was only 10.7 deaths per 100,000 people.
He also noted that in Colombia there were 33 violent deaths per 100,000 people last year, while Brazil had close to 40, Guatemala and El Salvador had more than 50 and that the capital of the United States, Washington, had more 30.
{{/usCountry}}He also noted that in Colombia there were 33 violent deaths per 100,000 people last year, while Brazil had close to 40, Guatemala and El Salvador had more than 50 and that the capital of the United States, Washington, had more 30.
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