In a video statement posted on social media Sunday, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard condemned the “act of barbarism” carried out in El Paso, Texas that took the lives of at least seven Mexican citizens and injured another nine. Mexico, he said, will take legal action to make sure that the U.S. takes steps to better protect Mexicans in the country.
The horrific shooting at a Walmart near the Cielo Vista Mall in El Paso Saturday, which left 20 people dead and another 26 injured, was an “act of barbarism” and a “terrorist act against innocent Mexicans,” Foreign Minister Ebrard said in the video, as reported by NBC News. The U.S., he suggested, has failed to take appropriate measures to protect Mexican citizens.
“The president has instructed me to ensure that Mexico’s indignation translates into … efficient, prompt, expeditious and forceful legal actions for Mexico to take a role and demand that conditions are established that protect … Mexicans in the United States,” Ebrard said (translation via NBC).
At least seven of those 20 murdered in the massacre were Mexican foreign nationals, as are nine of the 26 injured, according to the Mexican government. Ebard announced that he will be meeting with victims and offer the government’s support.
The shooter (whose identity is here withheld according to Daily Wire policy on mass shooters) left a “manifesto” indicating that he was deliberately targeting Hispanics, prompting a hate crime investigation.
As noted by NBC, El Paso has a population of nearly 700,000, over 80% of which is Hispanic or Latino, according to the most recent census data. El Paso borders Juárez, Mexico, which has a population of 1.3 million. Juárez has repeatedly come up in political debates because of its high crime rate, proponents of strengthened border protections frequently citing the city as a reason to ramp up security measures at the border.
In a statement Saturday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott condemned the “heinous and senseless act of violence” and vowed that the state “will do everything it can to ensure justice is delivered to the perpetrators of this heinous act.”
The shooting is being investigated as a hate crime and an act of domestic terrorism, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas John Bash said at a press conference on Sunday. “We’re going to do what we do to terrorists in this country, which is to deliver swift and certain justice,” said Bash in comments reported by ABC News. Federal authorities, he said, are considering bringing hate crimes and federal firearms charges against the suspect. The charges would carry the death penalty.
Editor’s Note: Recent studies suggest that “media coverage of mass shootings can have a significant impact on the psyches of potential mass shooters — that such potential mass shooters have a cognitive craving for attention, which they know they will receive for committing atrocities.” For this reason, The Daily Wire no longer publishes names and images of mass shooters as it has become increasingly clear in recent years that “the value of public knowledge regarding specific names and photographs of mass shooters is significantly outweighed by the possibility of encouraging more mass shootings.”
Revision: This article has been revised to note that the Walmart was near the Cielo Vista Mall, not one of the stores included in the mall.