Mexican Reporters Captured, Beaten By Armed Group In Guerrero, Mexico

An armed group believed to be called the Movement of Guerrero captured Mexican reporters and their families, beating several people, a local publication reported Tuesday.

The reporters, who are a part of the Guerrero Journalists' Club, hosted an annual awards ceremony Saturday in the town of Tlapa de Comonfort in the state of Guerrero, which has been in unrest for some time. Protests have followed the kidnapping of 43 male students, who went missing from the town in September, reportedly by a drug gang that collaborates with the police.

The attackers were armed with rifles, and shouted "Sold-out press!" as they apprehended the reporters and locked them in the town hall.

"There were dozens, nearly a hundred persons, some of them wearing hoods and armed, and others with sticks and police clubs," Miguel Angel Mata, president of the Guerrero Journalists' Club, told AFP. Mata said he, his wife and a few other guests were among those beaten.

Citizens of the town were reportedly offended by the Guerrero Journalists' Club hosting a celebration to promote politicians while Guerrero mourned the loss of the students. The attack ceased once the newspaper Milenio reported on its website that journalists had been kidnapped, according to the AFP.

Mata said that he and his group were left with no assistance after speaking with the state human rights commission, the national commission and the government.