23 killed in arson attack at a southern Mexico bar

At least 23 people including 16 men and nine women were killed and 13 others sustained injuries after an arson attack caused a fire at a bar in the southern Mexican port city of Veracruz on Tuesday night (local time).

The fire broke out at the El Caballo Blanco bar after being deliberately set by unknown assailants around 10:30 pm (local time) and left authorities wondering whether drug cartels were to be blamed, The Washington Post reports.

Mexican President Manuel Lopez Obrador condemned the murders and provided details of the attack at a news conference on early Wednesday morning.

"They closed the emergency exit doors and burned the place," he said.

"In the first investigations, we have information that the possible perpetrators have already been arrested and released," the President added.

However, no arrests have been announced so far. The Veracruz public security secretary and the prosecutor's office said they were working to locate the suspects involved, CNN reported.

Cuitlahuac Garcia Jimenez, the Governor of Veracruz, condemned the attack on Twitter.

"Just like in Minatitlan where we found those responsible, the crime that happened a few moments ago in Coatzacoalcos will not go unpunished. In Veracruz, criminal groups are no longer tolerated," Garcia Jimenez said, referring to the shooting of 13 people at a family party in Minatitlan, Veracruz in April.