72 bodies found in northern Mexico

SAN FERNANDO, Mexico, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- Mexican marines found 72 bodies in northern Mexico after a gunfight with a suspected drug cartel in which one marine and three suspects died, officials said.

Officials said the gruesome discovery near San Fernando, Tamaulipas, may be the largest drug cartel body dump found in the country since President Felipe Calderon began his offensive against drug trafficking in 2006, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.

When announcing the discovery, officials did not provide information about victims' identities, who had killed them or whether the bodies had been buried, the Times said. Also unclear was whether the 58 men and 14 women were killed at the same time or in separate incidents.

Naval officials said marines also recovered guns, ammunition, bulletproof vests and several vehicles, El Universal said.

"The federal government strongly condemns the barbaric acts committed by criminal organizations and reaffirms its commitment to the rule of law," the navy said in a statement.