Jesuit priests killed defending church refugee in Mexico

MEXICO CITY - Two Jesuit priests were killed at their church in northern Mexico, mowed down by one or more armed men in pursuit of someone who sought protection there, the government and the religious order said Tuesday.

The pair, Javier Campos Morales and Joaquin Cesar Mora Salazar, were killed Monday in the Cerocahui community in Mexico's Chihuahua state "while trying to defend a man who was seeking refuge," according to the Society of Jesuits.

"This happened in the context of the violence that this country is experiencing," Luis Gerardo Moro Madrid, head of the Jesuits of Mexico  said in a statement.

"We publicly condemn this tragedy and demand a prompt investigation and safety for the community."

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, in his daily press conference, said armed men entered the church in pursuit of another person apparently seeking refuge.

"They killed him. The priests came out and apparently they were also killed," said Lopez Obrador, adding there appeared to be information on the identities of those responsible.

The president conceded that several municipalities in Chihuahua state were struggling in the "presence of organized crime."

Experts say it is an important transit route for drugs to the United States, and thus violently contested between rival trafficking groups.

The Jesuits of Mexico said the killings were not "isolated," and "every day men and women are arbitrarily deprived of life," as it demanded "protective measures" for the community of Cerocahui.

It is common for religious leaders in Mexico to act as defenders of their communities and as mediators with criminal gangs operating there.

In states such as Michoacan in the west and Guerrero in the south, some have even entered into dialogue with drug traffickers in a bid for peace in regions that are mostly poor and with little state presence.

Some 30 priests have been killed in Mexico in the past decade, according to the CCM Catholic NGO.

Countrywide, more than 340,000 people have been killed in a wave of bloodshed since the government deployed the army to fight drug cartels in 2006. -- Agence France-Presse