As far as imagination goes, the drug gang terrorists are easily the equal of al-Qaeda when it comes to creating new and terrible ways to inflict mass casualties.

Yesterday, they attacked an upscale restaurant/casinio and killed 52 people - mostly women.

The BBC:

People here are still reeling from the shock of seeing their city, once known to be one of the safest in Latin America, become the scene for the first massive attack on innocent civilians in the history of Mexico's complex drugs conflict.

The Casino Royale, now guarded by the army, is close to collapse after flames engulfed it. The smell of burnt plastic and wood lingers on.

The facade was torn down by a crane from a nearby construction site as desperate casino employees tried to reach those who had gone back into the burning building to avoid being attacked by the gunmen. They had not realised that the emergency doors were locked, turning the building into a death trap.

"We found the bodies in toilets, offices, in places in which the victims tried to protect themselves from what they thought was a shoot-out at the entrance of the casino," rescuer Jorge Camacho Rincon said.

"They never imagined that the biggest threat was actually the fire that was started intentionally".

The violence rarely touches the middle and upper classes so this attack resonated throughout Mexico. One more indication that the war will not end anytime soon and that the government has yet to get a hold on security in many areas.