Journalist, 3 others killed in Mexico

A journalist was among four people killed inside a beer shop in central Mexico, the 13th media worker killed in the country this year.San Luis de la Paz Mayor Luis Snchez said Ernesto Mndez, director of the news site Tu Voz, or Your Voice, was with four other men when they were attacked.

A journalist was among four people killed inside a beer shop in central Mexico, the 13th media worker killed in the country this year.

San Luis de la Paz Mayor Luis Sánchez said Ernesto Méndez, director of the news site Tu Voz, or Your Voice, was with four other men when they were attacked. The fifth person was seriously wounded and taken to a hospital, he said.

Guanajuato Governor Diego Rodríguez Vallejo condemned the Tuesday night killings via Twitter on Wednesday.

Sánchez said that at this point it was unknown whether the attack was related to Méndez's journalistic work, his role as representative of local businesses in the planning of an upcoming fair or something else.

Press freedom organization Article 19 called on the government to offer protection to Méndez's colleagues and relatives.

Méndez had also worked until three years ago at the news site Zona Franca, according to its director Carmen Martínez.

It was not immediately clear whether Méndez was enrolled in the federal government's protection programme for journalists and human rights defenders under threat.

While organised crime is often involved in journalist killings, small town officials or politicians with political or criminal motivations are often suspects as well. Journalists running small news outlets in Mexico's interior are easy targets.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)