Mexico City, April 20 (IANS) Thirteen people, including a child, were shot dead at a family party in the Mexican state of Veracruz by unidentified armed assailants, authorities said.

Four other people were injured in the attack on Friday night in the city of Minatitlan, reports CNN.

"Federal and state forces have deployed a strong search and capture operation of those responsible for the events," Gutierrez Maldonado, secretary of public security in Veracruz state, tweeted on Saturday.

The motive for the mass shooting was not immediately known.