Mexico: Yet another priest found murdered

As reported by El Universal on 6 July 2017, another Roman Catholic priest has been killed in a church of the municipality of Los Reyes La Paz, in the State of Mexico. He was found with his hands tied and tape over his mouth. His body was covered in stab wounds. 18 priests have been murdered since President Enrique Peıa Nieto took office in 2012. As reported by La Croix International on 14 July 2017, Bishop Raul Vera has once again denounced the involvement of Mexican government bodies in organized crime. Rossana Ramirez, persecution analyst at World Watch Research, comments: "Although the motive behind this most recent killing is not yet known, the situation for Catholic priests is becoming increasingly dangerous. Besides murders, abductions have also become common. The lack of state protection for Christian leaders limits their pastoral work and costs lives. In many cases the inaction on the part of the government is the result of alliances between government officials and organized crime. The situation has reached an unacceptable level and Mexican bishops are openly denouncing such complicity."