On September 25, 2025, the gates of Mexico City’s Campo Militar 1 became the latest flashpoint in the long and anguished struggle for answers surrounding the disappearance of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College. As the 11th anniversary of the tragedy approached, demonstrators—many of them current students and relatives of the missing—gathered outside the military base, demanding justice and transparency in a case that continues to haunt the nation.
The protest began in the late morning, around 11:00 a.m., as reported by OEM, when a crowd assembled at the entrance to the military complex on Conscripto Avenue in Naucalpan, State of Mexico. The group, comprised of alleged student teachers from Ayotzinapa and family members of the disappeared, carried photographs of the 43 students who vanished in Iguala, Guerrero, on September 26, 2014. Their message was clear: after more than a decade, the families are still waiting for answers, and their patience is wearing thin.
According to the Associated Press, the 2014 disappearance occurred after students commandeered several buses, intending to travel to Mexico City for a protest commemorating the infamous 1968 massacre of demonstrators by government forces. Authorities believe the students were intercepted, abducted, and ultimately killed by a criminal cartel with alleged ties to government and military officials. The case quickly became emblematic of state complicity in violence and impunity in Mexico—a symbol that refuses to fade from public consciousness.
As the demonstration progressed, tensions escalated. Members of the Mexican Army attempted to block the protesters’ advance by forming a human chain at the base’s main access gate. But the barrier proved insufficient. Around 1:00 p.m., a group of hooded demonstrators used a commandeered truck to ram and break open the gate, as detailed by OEM. The vehicle became wedged at the entrance, and the protesters wasted no time: they launched fireworks and rockets at the truck until it caught fire, sending plumes of smoke into the air and drawing a crowd of onlookers and media.
Objects and blunt projectiles were also hurled at the front of the base, amplifying the sense of confrontation. According to Vallarta Daily, the protest at Campo Militar 1 marked a significant escalation in the ongoing campaign for justice, reflecting a deep-seated frustration with what families and supporters perceive as official stonewalling and inaction.
No injuries were reported during the intense demonstration, but the spectacle was enough to prompt a rapid response. At approximately 1:10 p.m., a military tank arrived on the scene and doused the burning truck with a powerful stream of water, extinguishing the flames. The charred remains of the vehicle stood as a stark symbol of the unresolved pain and anger that has accumulated over the past 11 years.
Despite numerous arrests—including those of a former attorney general, local officials, military personnel, and police officers—there have been no convictions in the case. This lack of legal closure has only fueled suspicions among the families and their advocates that the true extent of state involvement has yet to be fully revealed. Many believe that the military, in particular, holds crucial information that could break the case wide open.
For years, families and their legal teams have demanded that the Mexican armed forces hand over hundreds of documents believed to be key to solving the mystery of what happened to the 43 students. Yet, as the Associated Press notes, the military has so far resisted these calls, citing national security and other concerns. This ongoing refusal has only deepened the mistrust between the families and the state.
In 2022, a government truth commission took the extraordinary step of declaring the disappearance of the Ayotzinapa students a "state crime." The commission concluded that the students were killed by cartel members who trafficked heroin and acted in collusion with security forces at every level—local, state, and federal—including the military. Despite this damning assessment, concrete progress has remained elusive, and the fate of the vast majority of the missing students remains unknown. Only the charred remains of three have been positively identified.
President Claudia Sheinbaum, who recently replaced the prosecutor in charge of the case, has insisted that new lines of investigation are being pursued. However, according to multiple sources, including the Associated Press and Vallarta Daily, the families of the disappeared have seen little evidence of meaningful change. Their demands remain the same: transparency, accountability, and above all, the truth.
The events of September 25, 2025, were not isolated. They formed part of a broader mobilization marking the anniversary of the students’ disappearance, a date that has become a rallying point for those seeking justice in Mexico’s ongoing struggle with impunity and violence. The demonstration at Campo Militar 1 was just one of several actions planned nationwide, a sign that the case continues to resonate deeply with the Mexican public.
As the protest unfolded, the sense of urgency was palpable. Families of the disappeared, some holding back tears, pleaded for the government and military to release the records that could finally provide closure. "We are not asking for favors," one family member told local media. "We are demanding our right to the truth."
The symbolism of targeting a military base was not lost on observers. For many, the army represents both the power of the state and its potential for secrecy and impunity. The demonstrators’ decision to confront the military directly underscored their belief that the answers they seek are being withheld by those in uniform.
At the heart of the protests lies a broader question about accountability in Mexico. The Ayotzinapa case has become a touchstone for debates about government transparency, the rule of law, and the persistent influence of organized crime within state institutions. While President Sheinbaum’s administration has promised renewed efforts, the families’ skepticism remains—fueled by years of broken promises and incomplete investigations.
In the aftermath of the fiery confrontation, the burned-out truck and battered gate at Campo Militar 1 served as a somber reminder of the unresolved trauma that continues to grip the nation. Eleven years on, the fate of the 43 students is still shrouded in uncertainty, and the calls for justice grow louder with each passing anniversary.
For the families and supporters of the Ayotzinapa 43, the struggle is far from over. Their demands for truth and accountability echo not only through the streets of Mexico City but across the entire country, serving as a powerful indictment of a system that, in their eyes, has yet to deliver justice.