FILE PHOTO: Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador takes part in the inauguration of the government's new militarized National Guard police force in an effort to tackle a deteriorating security situation, at Campo Marte in Mexico City, Mexico June 30, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso/File Photo
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Murders in Mexico jumped in the first half of the year to the highest on record, according to official data, underscoring the vast challenges President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador faces in reducing violence in the cartel-ravaged country.
There were 14,603 murders from January to June, versus the 13,985 homicides registered in the first six months of 2018, according to data posted over the weekend on the website of Mexico's national public security office.
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