Mexican federal police clashed with demonstrators and took control of the centre of the provincial capital of Oaxaca in southern Mexico early Monday, but authorities denied media and demonstrators' reports that the raid led to several casualties, Deutsche Press Agentur dpa reported. Presidential spokesman Ruben Aguilar and other federal authorities denied any deaths had arisen from the operation, launched against protestors lead by the Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca (APPO), a leftwing organization at the centre of a teacher's strike that has paralyzed the city for months. "Some APPO leaders and some media have been reporting the deaths of some people as a result of this operation. That is completely false," Aguilar said. However, the chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights (CNDH), Jose Luis Soberanes, reported one person had been killed and 22 arrested, while Internet daily e-consulta reported the deaths of a 15-year-old boy and a 34-year-old teacher who was stabbed. APPO leader Flavio Sosa said three people were confirmed dead, including a teenager, and vowed to continue the protests through at least one thousand barricades he said had been set up across the city. "We are saying that we are not going to hand them the city, we are going to resist in each and every one of our barricades. We Oaxaquenos have dignity," Sosa said. Police used tear gas and water to disperse protestors, after demonstrators fought the incursion with stones, sticks and Molotov cocktails. Cars, buses and barricades were set on fire. Mexican Interior Minister Carlos Abascal said the operation was successful and the centre of the city of Oaxaca was now under the control of the authorities.
