Protesters attempt to storm Mexico’s National Palace

Protesters angry at the suspected massacre of 43 students tried to break into Mexico City’s National Palace Saturday while others torched several trucks in the south of the country. Thousands of people marched in the capital in the latest demonstration over a case that has repulsed the nation and triggered the biggest crisis of President Enrique Pena Nieto’s administration. The violent protests came a day after authorities said suspected gang hitmen confessed to killing the 43 students and incinerating their bodies in the southern state of Guerrero. A small group of protesters used metal barricades as battering rams in an attempt to break open the National Palace door. They briefly set the door on fire and spray-painted the words “we want them back alive” on the 16th-century building.

It appears that the federal government, with great irresponsibility, is interested in closing this matter because it’s all based on testimony. There is nothing definitive.

Meliton Ortega, uncle of a missing student

Hours earlier in Guerrero’s capital Chilpancingo, more than 300 students threw rocks and firebombs at the regional government headquarters. They also burned around 10 vehicles, including trucks and a federal police vehicle, and chanted “they took them alive, we want them back alive” outside the building, which was partially torched in a protest over the case last month. Despite the unrest, Pena Nieto plans to leave Sunday to attend major summits in China and Australia, though he shortened the trip due to the crisis.

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