Mexico: Texas shooting ‘act of terrorism’

Mexico’s government said it considers a shooting at a crowded department store in El Paso, Texas, that left eight of its citizens dead an “act of terrorism” against Mexicans and hopes it will lead to changes in U.S. gun laws.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Monday that Mexico will respect the debate that will unfold in the United States following Saturday’s attack that killed a total of 22 people, but he believes the discussion could lead to change north of the border.

“There could be a change to their laws because it is stunning what is happening, unfortunate and very powerful,”López Obrador said.“I don’t rule out that they could change their constitution and laws. These are new times; you have to always be adjusting the legal framework to the new reality.”

Many in Mexico were reeling from revelations that the shooting appeared to have been aimed at Hispanics — and Mexicans in particular.

Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard urged the U.S. government to establish a “clear and convincing position against hate crimes” after what he labeled “an act of terrorism” against Mexicans.

On Monday, Ebrard raised the death toll of Mexican citizens to eight. He had previously said there were seven wounded, but that figure was not updated. Ebrard traveled to El Paso later Monday to meet with families of the victims.

“Mexico is outraged,” he said.

Just minutes before the rampage, U.S. investigators believe the shooter posted a rambling online manifesto in which he railed against a perceived “invasion” of Hispanics coming into the U.S. He then allegedly targeted a shopping area in El Paso that is about 5 miles from the main border checkpoint with Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

Tens of thousands of Mexicans cross the border legally each day to work and shop in the city of 680,000 fulltime residents, and El Paso County is more than 80% Latino, according to the latest census data.