Attackers wielding knives burst into a child's birthday party in central Mexico, stabbing and slashing 11 people to death, including two minors.

Hidalgo state prosecutor Javier Ramiro Lara Salinas said at a news conference Thursday that the preliminary investigation suggested the attack in a house near Tizayuca, just north of Mexico City, was a 'settling of scores'.

Among the victims was a man whose ID identified him as a Mexico City police officer.

Lara said the home's owner had served time on a kidnapping charge in Mexico State and he indicated the homeowner was involved in organized crime.

Authorities received a 911 call after midnight Thursday alerting them to the killings.

Officers discovered 11 bodies - seven of them female and four male. Two of the deceased were minors, state authorities said.

They had initially said the victims were seven men and four women. Four minors survived the attack without injuries.

One child told officers that masked men in police uniforms had burst into the tent where the party was happening and killed all the adults.

None of the victims was shot. All were killed by knives or other cutting weapons.

The area had largely been spared the violence affecting other parts of Mexico. </s> Image copyright Reuters Image caption Police have cordoned off the area around the house where the killings took place

Masked men burst into a children's birthday party in the Mexican city of Tizayuca in central Hidalgo state, killing 11.

Police said they had found three children alive at the scene but all 11 adults at the party had been shot dead.

It had taken place in a tent set up by the host outside their home in a residential area of the city.

Mexico has recently seen a surge in violence linked to disputes between drug cartels.

In May alone, 2,186 killings were recorded - approximately 70 a day.

A recent trend has seen hit men murdering whole families, including children. </s> Attackers wielding knives burst into a child's birthday party in central Mexico, stabbing and slashing to death 11 people, including two minors, authorities said Thursday.

Hidalgo state prosecutor Javier Ramiro Lara Salinas said at a news conference that the preliminary investigation suggested the attack in a house near Tizayuca, just north of Mexico City, was a "settling of scores."

Among the victims was a man with an ID identifying him as a Mexico City police officer. Lara said the home's owner had served time on a kidnapping charge in Mexico State.

Authorities received a 911 call after midnight Thursday alerting them to the killings.

Officers discovered 11 bodies — seven of them female and four male, with two minors, state authorities said. They had initially said the victims were seven men and four women. Four minors survived the attack without injuries.

None of the victims was. All were killed by knives or other cutting weapons.

The area had largely been spared the violence affecting other parts of Mexico. </s> Authorities in central Mexico say gunmen burst into a party and opened fire, killing seven men and four women.

The Public Safety Department in the state of Hidalgo says in a statement that the killings occurred early Thursday in a house near Tizayuca, just north of Mexico City.

The motive in the killing remains under investigation. The area had largely been spared the violence affecting other parts of Mexico. </s> Masked men burst into a children's party and hack to death seven men, four women and two minors in Hidalgo state.

Masked men burst into a children's party in central Mexico and hacked 11 people to death, authorities and witnesses said Thursday, in the violence-plagued country's latest mass murder.

Police found the gory scene when they responded to an emergency call received just after midnight in the city of Tizayuca, in the central state of Hidalgo, officials said.

Neighbours said four men burst into a large white tent where a family was hosting a children's party outside their home.

They stabbed to death seven women, two men and two minors, said state prosecutor Javier Lara.

The murders appear to be a settling of scores, he told a news conference, indicating that the homeowner was involved in organised crime.

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"He had a criminal record for various crimes, including kidnapping, for which he did time in prison," Lara said.

"We can presume this was a settling of scores. Evidence indicates a hit squad was sent to the home to kill (the victims)."

Another victim was an employee of the Mexico City public security service, he said.

One of the children told authorities that masked men wearing police uniforms had arrived during the party and killed all the adults, according to newspaper Excelsior.

Authorities had cordoned off the entire neighbourhood on Thursday morning, and security was tight. Forensic workers could be seen examining the crime scene.

Mexico has seen a surge of deadly violence in recent months, extending to areas that were once considered relatively calm. That includes Hidalgo, which sits just north of the capital, Mexico City.

Murders hit a record high in May, according to the latest official data: 2,186 homicides, an average of 70 a day and the most since the country began keeping track 20 years ago.

The violence is largely fuelled by powerful, ultra-violent drug cartels.

Since Mexico deployed the military to fight drug trafficking in 2006, a wave of bloodshed has left more than 200,000 people dead or missing, as rival cartels wage war on each other and the army.

Recently, hitmen have been wiping out entire families - including children - in a sign that the unspoken code of honour that once governed the turf wars and revenge killings of Mexico's cartels is fraying. </s> Masked gunmen burst into a children's party in central Mexico and killed 11 people, authorities and witnesses said Thursday, in the violence-plagued country's latest mass murder.

Police found the gory scene when they responded to an emergency call received just after midnight in the city of Tizayuca, in the central state of Hidalgo, the state security service said in a statement.

Neighbours said four gunmen burst into a large white tent where a family was hosting a children's party outside their home and shot dead seven men and four women.

One of the children told authorities that masked men wearing police uniforms had arrived during the party and killed all the adults, according to newspaper Excelsior.

Authorities had cordoned off the entire neighbourhood Thursday morning, and security was tight. Forensic workers could be seen examining the crime scene.

Mexico has seen a surge of deadly violence in recent months, extending to areas that were once considered relatively calm. That includes Hidalgo, which sits just north of the capital, Mexico City.

Murders hit a record high in May, according to the latest official data: 2,186 homicides, an average of 70 a day and the most since the country began keeping track 20 years ago.

The violence is fueled by powerful, ultra-violent drug cartels.

Since Mexico deployed the military to fight drug trafficking in 2006, a wave of bloodshed has left more than 200,000 people dead or missing, as rival cartels wage war on each other and the army.

Recently, hitmen have been wiping out entire families -- including children -- in a sign that the unspoken code of honour that once governed the turf wars and revenge killings of Mexico's cartels is fraying. </s> Gunmen raided a family party in the Mexican state of Veracruz, killing 13 people, including a child, authorities said.

Four other people were injured in the attack Friday in the city of Minatitlán

“Federal and state forces have deployed a strong search and capture operation of those responsible for the events,” Gutiérrez Maldonado, secretary of public security in Veracruz state, tweeted Saturday.

Federal authorities are collaborating with the Veracruz state authorities to find those responsible, authorities said.

State authorities have held an emergency meeting “to address the regrettable and condemnable events,” Veracruz state Gov. Cuitláhuac García tweeted.

A motive for the mass shooting was not immediately known.

The attackers were looking for a person called El Beky, according to preliminary reports obtained by the state police. “El Beky” is the owner of a bar located in Minatitlán. </s> MEXICO CITY (DPA) - Unidentified gunmen stormed a party in the south-eastern Mexican state of Veracruz and killed 13 people, including a young child, according to reports.

The attack occurred late on Friday (April 19) as a children's party was under way in the city of Minatitlan, the broadcaster Telemundo reported.

Seven other people were injured, the reports said. Most of the victims are said to have been from the same family.

Police said the the gunmen were still at large and their motives were unknown.

In a tweet, Veracruz Interior Minister Hugo Gutierrez Maldonado offered his condolences to victims' relatives and promised to catch the killers.

Veracruz is one of Mexico's most dangerous states, where cartels often engage in brutal battles. Last year, there were over 33,000 murders in the country, most of which were linked to organised crime. </s> At least 23 people were killed and another 13 severely injured when assailants attacked a night club in Mexico's Gulf coast port city of Coatzacoalcos.

The attack, which started on Tuesday night, killed 8 women and 15 men.

Read more: Against the current: Femicide in Mexico on the rise and growing more brutal

Local media reported men first opened fire with maschine guns and then threw Molotov cocktails inside the El Caballo Blanco (The White Horse) table dance bar when it was packed full of people.

Pictures on the night club's Facebook page show images of dancers, customers, walls painted with nude women and "VIP rooms."

The attorney-general's office said they were working with police to investigate and find the perpetrators.

Veracruz Governor Cuitlahuac Garcia Jimenez said that the "criminals" would not go unpunished.

"In Veracruz criminal groups are no longer tolerated," he wrote on Twitter.

Veracruz is one of the most violent states in Mexico with fierce fighting between criminal groups for control of drug trafficking and other criminal activities.

So far this year, more than 1,600 people have died from violence in the state, an average of seven deaths per day.

Some local media likened the attack to one in 2011 on a bar in Monterey that killed 52 people.

The Zetas drug cartel carried out that attack using fire and guns to enforce demands for protection payments.

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Masked men attack a child's birthday party in Tizayuca, Hidalgo, killing 11 adults.