For years, Mexico has been gripped by horrific violence as drug cartels battle each other and kill civilians. In the last 15 years alone, homicides have tripled.
The violence, the Mexican government says, is fueled, in part, by American guns, and the nation’s lax gun control laws.
According to the U.S. government, 70 percent of guns recovered in Mexico originate from the United States. The Mexican government — which has highly restrictive domestic gun laws — says that number is more like 90 percent.
Now Mexico is bringing a lawsuit against 10 gun manufacturers in a U.S. federal court, accusing them of knowingly facilitating the sale of guns to drug cartels in the country.