2014 Iguala mass kidnapping
2014 CE.
Shown on the map at 17.554°, -99.410°.
On September 26, 2014, forty-three male students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College disappeared after being forcibly abducted in Iguala, Guerrero, Mexico, in what has been called one of Mexico's most infamous human rights cases. They were allegedly taken into custody by local policemen from Iguala and Cocula in collusion with organized crime, with later evidence implicating the Mexican Army. Officials have concluded there is no indication the students are alive, but as of 2025, only three students' remains have been identified and their deaths confirmed. While tens of thousands have gone missing during the Mexican drug war, the 43 missing have become a cause célèbre due to the persistent activism and demands for an explanation by their parents and relatives. Official obstacles put in the way of independent investigations of the case have also provoked social unrest and international protests including protests leading to the resignation of the governor of Guerrero. The students were preparing to commemorate the anniversary of the 1968 Tlatelolco massacre, following a tradition where they commandeered several buses to travel to Mexico City.
Text from the Wikipedia article Iguala mass kidnapping, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.