On 26 February 2023, five unarmed civilians were killed by Mexican Army troops in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, when soldiers fired at a pickup truck under disputed circumstances. A human rights group said that the dead were youths returning from a nightclub. The soldiers said the pickup truck had refused orders to stop. Three bodies were found inside the truck, while two bodies were found on the sidewalk; a sixth occupant of the vehicle was injured but survived.^[1] Official reports did not make any mention of finding weapons on the bodies or any indication that the youths had been armed.^[2]

Riots broke out in response, and a soldier was beaten by rioters. Gunshots were also heard, reportedly by the military firing into the crowd.^[2]