Bloomberg — Ciro Gómez Leyva, one of Mexico’s best-known journalists and TV anchors, survived an assassination attempt close to his home in Mexico City, an escalation of the violence that has made the country one of the world’s most dangerous for reporters.
Gómez Leyva was attacked by two people on a motorcycle at 11:10 p.m. on Thursday when he was 200 meters (656 feet) from his house, he said in a post on Twitter. He survived the shooting thanks to his armored car, he said, adding pictures of what appears to be the impact of bullets against his vehicle.
Mexico’s President Andres Manuel López Obrador expressed his solidarity with Gomez Leyva on Friday, saying that, despite their differences, he repudiates any attempt on someone’s life.
“Fortunately there were no fatal, serious consequences, and we celebrate him because he is a journalist, a human being, but also a leader of public opinion, and to harm to a personality like Ciro generates a lot of political instability,” he said during his daily news conference. “No one should be attacked, much less have their life taken.”
Mexico City authorities, including the police chief, the prosecutor’s office and the mayor, are investigating the incident and the motorcycle used in the attack has been identified.
At least 13 journalists were killed in Mexico in the first eight months of 2022, according to an August report by the Committee to Protect Journalists, the highest number that the organization has ever documented in the country in a single year. Still, attacks against reporters in the capital Mexico City are relatively rare.
Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico City’s mayor, said the local government is giving Gomez Leyva protection and that it has started an investigation into the incident, looking at security camera footage.
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