Mexican activist groups investigating forced disappearances have discovered over 1,000 bone fragments near Lake Chalco, close to Mexico City.
Authorities have been conducting excavations in the area for over a week.
The remains are believed to be connected to a controversial military offensive against drug cartels two decades ago.
This offensive likely triggered increased violence by criminal groups and abuses by security forces. Since then, more than 130,000 disappearances have been recorded across the country.
According to one investigator, the activists uncovered bone fragments in areas that had already been searched by the local public prosecutor’s office.
Five research groups and independent families have criticised the authorities, calling the investigation a “forensic crisis of immeasurable magnitude” and accusing them of failing to perform their duties effectively.
Earlier this month, a report from the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances revealed the complicity of government officials in forced disappearances, labelling it a “crime against humanity.”
