Two soldiers were killed in a landmine explosion in Mexico, a day after two soldiers were killed in a landmine explosion in the same area

An explosion killed two Mexican soldiers in The second fatal accident This week involves an improvised land mine in a The western country suffers from crimeWednesday, authorities said.

According to El Universal newspaper, the soldiers were trying to defuse the device when it exploded.

The explosion occurred late Tuesday in Buenavista MichoacanThe State Attorney’s Office said.

A military source, who requested to remain anonymous, said that the forces are searching for similar devices believed to have been planted in the area.

On Monday, another homemade landmine explosion killed two Mexican soldiers and injured five others in the same area. Before the explosionOfficials said that soldiers found the dismembered bodies of three people.

Defense Minister Ricardo Trivilla said on Tuesday that he suspected the device had been planted by members of a local criminal group locked in a war with a larger drug gang.

He added that six other soldiers had been killed by similar improvised explosive devices since late 2018.

Mexico has suffered from widespread drug violence that has killed more than 450,000 people since the government deployed the army to combat drug trafficking in 2006, according to official figures.

In the previous detail only Report on gang bomb attacks In August 2023, the Defense Ministry said at the time that a total of 42 soldiers, police officers and suspects were injured by IEDs in the first seven-and-a-half months of 2023, up from 16 in all of 2022.

Overall, 556 IEDs of all types – roadside, drone and car bombs – were found in 2023, the army announced in a statement. press release last year.