Protests in more than 20 Mexican cities against drug-related violence have been interrupted by news of the discovery of 59 bodies

The bodies were found in Tamaulipas state by police investigating the abduction of bus passengers. The area is a hotspot in the violence related to drug trafficking that is ravaging parts of Mexico. The violence was condemned by protesters in the main square in Mexico City, who chanted: "No more blood!" The demonstrations were inspired by poet and journalist Javier Sicilia, whose son was killed. Sicilia has blamed Mexican politicians as well as criminal gangs for the violence, saying they have torn apart the fabric of the nation. The bodies were found in eight separate graves in the area of San Fernando, police said - with 43 corpses found in a single grave. Authorities in Tamaulipas said they had found the graves while investigating reports that buses in the area had been stopped and passengers pulled off and kidnapped. In a raid, 11 people were arrested, while five others being held captive by the kidnappers were freed. A state minister said that two of the dead were women, and many of the victims appeared to have died between 10 and 15 days ago - dates that would roughly match the bus abductions. It appears to be the largest single discovery of bodies since 72 Central and South American migrants were found dead in the same town in August 2010, after drug gangs killed them for refusing to work for them. The protests were called by Sicilia after his 24-year-old son, Juan Francisco, was found dead inside a car along with six other people in the city of Cuernavaca.