Some 35,000 people have been killed since 2006 when Mexican President Felipe Calderon launched a war against drugs and drug cartels, The Washington Post reported.

 The massacre of 52 people at the Casino Royale in Monterrey, Mexico, was yet another attack linked to this ever-waging drug war.

The Washington Post reported that on Aug. 25, a security camera recorded images of four vehicles pulling up to the front of the Casino Royale. At least a dozen armed men exited the vehicles and entered the building. Within two and a half minutes of the gunmen’s arrival, the casino was engulfed in flames and the vehicles pulled away.

“Based on the statements and evidence we have, we can determine that the people were not the target,” said Nuevo Leon Attorney General Adrian Emilio de la Garza to Fox News. Fox News reported that Calderon declared this massacre to be the worst attack on innocent civilians in recent years. According to ABC, out of the 52 people killed, 42 of them were women, one of whom was pregnant. Many of the victims died due to smoke inhalation as they tried to hide from the gunmen instead of fleeing from the burning building.

“Many of the bodies were found inside the casino’s bathrooms, where employees and customers had locked themselves to escape the gunmen,” said Mayor of Monterrey Fernando Larrazabal to Fox News. ABC reported that five men and a police officer have been arrested in relation to the massacre. The five men have confessed to the attack and are being detained under a preventative order until the prosecution has built a case against them.

“Los Zetas, Mexico’s most violent drug cartel, is suspected of ordering the attack on the casino,” said Nuevo Leon state Governor Rodrigo Medina to Fox News, which later reported that this information was gained from the suspects.

Los Zetas was not targeting civilians with this attack; the attack was in relation to the ever-increasing problem with drug cartels in Mexico. Fox News reported that the drug cartels have been blackmailing businesses into paying them for protection and threatening to attack the establishment if they do not pay up.

ABC reported that this is indeed the case with the Casino Royale. The detainees are accused of burning down the casino because the owner refused to pay the Los Zetas cartel for protection. The attack, however, harmed many more than the owner of the casino.

Following the massacre, Calderon declared three days of mourning to commemorate the innocent victims.

“We are not confronting common criminals,” Calderon said in a televised nationwide address. “We are facing true terrorists who have gone beyond all limits.”

But how are these terrorists funding their organizations? How do they continue to have so much power, despite a war on drugs that has been combating these cartels for the last five years? Calderon points his finger north.

“The economic power and fire power of the criminal organizations operating in Mexico and Latin America come from this endless demand for drugs in the United States,” Calderon said to the Washington Post. “We are neighbors, we are allies, we are friends, but also, you are responsible. That is my message.”

The Washington Post reported that President Barack Obama denounced the attack as “barbaric and reprehensible,” and issued a statement commending the people of Mexico and its government for their constant battle against the national and international drug trade. While he did not respond directly to Calderon’s accusations, Obama did promise that America will remain a constant friend and ally in this war.

Calderon, however, continues to entreat the United States to make a greater effort to reduce the clamor for illegal drugs and to cease weapons trafficking into Mexico.

“If … (Americans) are resigned to consuming drugs, then they need to find alternatives … and establish clear points of access different from the border with Mexico, but this situation can’t keep going on like this.” Calderon said to Fox News.

 The massacre of 52 people at the Casino Royale in Monterrey, Mexico, was yet another attack linked to this ever-waging drug war.

The Washington Post reported that on Aug. 25, a security camera recorded images of four vehicles pulling up to the front of the Casino Royale. At least a dozen armed men exited the vehicles and entered the building. Within two and a half minutes of the gunmen’s arrival, the casino was engulfed in flames and the vehicles pulled away.

“Based on the statements and evidence we have, we can determine that the people were not the target,” said Nuevo Leon Attorney General Adrian Emilio de la Garza to Fox News. Fox News reported that Calderon declared this massacre to be the worst attack on innocent civilians in recent years. According to ABC, out of the 52 people killed, 42 of them were women, one of whom was pregnant. Many of the victims died due to smoke inhalation as they tried to hide from the gunmen instead of fleeing from the burning building.

“Many of the bodies were found inside the casino’s bathrooms, where employees and customers had locked themselves to escape the gunmen,” said Mayor of Monterrey Fernando Larrazabal to Fox News. ABC reported that five men and a police officer have been arrested in relation to the massacre. The five men have confessed to the attack and are being detained under a preventative order until the prosecution has built a case against them.