Assailants shoot at El Debate newspaper office in Mexico

Mexico City, October 18, 2024—CPJ is highly concerned after unidentified attackers fired at the offices of the El Debate newspaper at 11 p.m. on October 17, in Culiacán, the capital of the northern Mexican state of Sinaloa. No one was hurt; the building’s facade, two outlet cars, and two staff members’ personal vehicles were damaged in the attack. 

“The brazen shooting at the offices of El Debate not only underscores the ongoing crisis of violence against the press in Mexico but is a stark reminder of the urgent need for the recently appointed government of President Claudia Sheinbaum to investigate this attack and take all appropriate steps to provide El Debate’s staff with protection,” said Jan-Albert Hootsen, CPJ’s Mexico representative. “As long as authorities continue to stand by, impunity in crimes against the press will continue to be the norm, and any pretense of respect for press freedom will ring hollow.”

El Debate is one of Culiacán’s oldest and most widely circulated regional dailies and has extensively reported on the rising criminal violence in the state. 

The Institute for Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists, which operates under supervision of the Sinaloa state government, and Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya condemned the attack in separate statements on Friday. Moya also ordered an investigation. 

CPJ’s several calls to El Debate and the state public prosecutor’s office (FGE) requesting comment about the investigation were not answered. 

An official who spoke to CPJ on the condition of anonymity, as they are not authorized to speak publicly on the matter, said the Federal Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists, which operates under supervision of the federal Interior Ministry in Mexico City, is establishing contact with the newspaper and Sinaloa state authorities to evaluate the need for state-sponsored protection.