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US family attacked on notorious stretch of Mexican highway, gunmen still at large

Mexican authorities say the family was traveling in two vehicles on a highway near the Texas border when an SUV cut them off, causing them to collide and stop.

Mexican authorities continued searching Monday for the gunmen responsible for an attack on a sparsely traveled stretch of highway near the Texas border that left a 13-year-old U.S. citizen dead and four relatives wounded. 

On Saturday night, a family traveling in two vehicles was attacked on a two-lane highway paralleling the U.S.-Mexico border in the township of Ciudad Mier in the state of Tamaulipas. 

Authorities say an SUV cut them off causing them to collide and stop. The attackers then opened fire. 

The area where the attack occurred is contested by drug cartels. The family was returning to the U.S. after spending the holidays in the central Mexico state of San Luis Potosi. 

RELATED: American family attacked in Mexico, child killed

According to the Associated Press, among those who were wounded was a 10-year-old. The AP reported that photos from Saturday night's attack showed a cartel's initials had been scrawled on the back window of one of the vehicles. 

The U.S. State Department had issued a warning last month for travelers headed to Mexico, due to crime and kidnapping. The State Department had said travelers should use increased caution for the entire country of Mexico. Tamaulipas was one of the states within Mexico that the government advised travelers to completely avoid.  

RELATED: US issues Mexico travel warning with several states marked 'Do Not Travel'

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