Almost 30,000 people have been slain in the Central American country since 2006 as violent gangs battle for control of the lucrative drug routes from South American to markets in the USA.

Until this week the violence has been limited to border towns like Ciudad Juarez, which the UK Government advises as a ‘no go area’ far away from Mexico’s mainly coastal tourist spots.

However, that all changed this week when six women and two men were murdered in an armed attack on a bar in Cancun, which is due to host the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) in two months.

Officially Mexican police are still investigating the incident but local radio stations have reported that two black vehicles pulled up to the bar and six armed men threw in Molotov cocktails.

A spokesman for the British Foreign Office said travel advice to Mexico had been reviewed following the incident earlier this week.

While tourists are warned against travel to towns along the US border, Britain currently rates most of Mexico safe to travel to.

However, the official line is less than reassuring, stating: “Most visits to Mexico are trouble-free, but crime and kidnappings continue.”

Luke Walsh

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