6 police officers killed in ambush in northern Mexico

Six police officers were killed and four others were wounded Sunday in the northern Mexico border state of Nuevo León after they were ambushed by a presumed drug gang equipped with 10 homemade armored cars and heavy weaponry.

Nuevo León state police said the patrol was outnumbered in the pre-dawn attack on a highway leading to a border crossing into Texas. The force said the officers performed “heroically” in the attack.

State prosecutors said the dead included one female officer. There was no immediate information on the identity of the attackers. But the nearby city of Nuevo Laredo has long been dominated by the violent Northeast cartel.

Nuevo León suffered heavy violence under the old Zetas cartel in the last decade. After quieting somewhat, it has seen an uptick in killings so far this year.