SW News: At least 40 migrants were killed and scores injured after a fire broke out late on Monday at a migrant detention center in Ciudad Juarez city of Mexico. The National Immigration Institute reports that 29 injured are in a "delicate-serious" condition. According to the agency, 68 men from Central and South America were housed in the center when it was swallowed in the blaze.

Soon after the fire broke out, rows of victims were spread out outside the facility. Firefighters, ambulances, and mortuary trucks descended upon the area.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador reported that the fire broke out after a protest against deportations. He added, "They never imagined this would cause this terrible misfortune." However, the authorities are yet to give further details. The Mexican attorney general's office has opened an investigation over the blaze.

Authorities and migrants in the city have reportedly been at odds recently. Earlier this month, more than 30 migrant shelters and advocacy groups wrote an open letter decrying the criminalization of migrants and asylum seekers in the city, accusing officials of abuse and usage of excessive force against migrants awaiting the procedure.

Meanwhile, Bishop José Guadalupe Torres of Ciudad Juárez expressed sorrow and solace for the blaze victims and assured his prayer for them. Separately, the coordinators of the Bishops of Texas and Mexico, the Most Rev. Eugenio Lira of Matamoros, and Bishop Gustavo García-Siller of San Antonio, also expressed condolences over the tragic incident.

The Mexican Bishops' Conference decried the incident stating that this was not just a single case citing various tragic incidents that happened to migrants. They assured their closeness to those affected and condemned that these migration centers are mostly like prisons.