Seven Mexican youths were shot dead during a festival organized by the Catholic church in central Guanajuato.

The gunmen opened fire on a group of people who remained in the central square of the village of San Bartolo de Berios after an event organized in the local parish.

Witnesses said the attacker drove directly to the village square in the early hours of Monday morning, appearing to have shot randomly.

Authorities have not yet stated what the motive for the shooting might be, but information on signs left at several nearby locations seems to suggest it was performed by Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel.

Although attacks on nightclubs, bars and cockfighting fields in Mexico, which were violently attacked by cartels, are not uncommon, attacks on events organized by the Catholic Church have been rarely seen.

The Mexican Bishops' Congress, representing the country's bishop, condemned the deadly shooting, saying "the spiral of violence has caused harm to many communities."

Local Archbishop Jaime Calderón also issued a statement blaming the attack on the fight for territory between his opponents cartels.

Guanajuato, where San Bartolo de Berrios is located, has the highest number of murders in any Mexican state in 2024, with a total of 2,597 homicides.

Jalisco's new generation cartels (CJNG) and Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel are both active in the state and have been trapped in a deadly battle to control the territory.

Although the two groups engage in ransomware and drug trafficking, they are increasingly digging pipelines throughout the country, transporting gasoline from refineries to main distribution points.

The practice of stealing and selling fuel on the black market - called Huachicoleo - is the main source of income for criminal gangs in the area.

In the fight for territorial control, these gangs often try to spread fear among the local population to ensure their silence and compliance.

Bloody shootings, such as one in San Bartolo de Berrios and subsequent shootings that show threatening information, are a cruel way gangs use to show that they have expanded into specific towns.

Residents of San Bartolo de Berrios said they heard about 100 photos in the early hours of Monday in a few minutes.

The scene in the central square is similar to the bodies of seven young men, two of whom are under 18 years old, scattered on the sidewalk, they said.

So far, no arrests related to the attack have been arrested.