Ten killed in clash of Mexican self-defense forces

Chilpancingo (Mexico) (AFP) Ten members of rival civilian self-defense groups were killed in a gun battle in the Mexican state of Guerrero, a local security official said late Sunday.

Guerrero, located on Mexico's southern Pacific coast, is one of the country's most violent regions, where rump groups of criminals belonging to defeated but once powerful drug cartels fight to control lucrative drug smuggling routes.

In response, armed civilian vigilante groups have emerged in an attempt to maintain peace.

"Members of two groups of armed civilian groups that call themselves community (self-defense) police faced off in a gun battle on Sunday," said Roberto Alvarez, the regional head of security.

After the clash state police found "two vehicles that showed multiple bullet impacts and inside the lifeless bodies of ten people," Alvarez said.

The statement did not say how many people were found in each vehicle, or which groups the victims belonged to.

Drug-related violence has resulted in some 200,000 deaths in Mexico since December 2006, according to official figures.