Mexico City, Jun 23 (AP) A Mexican military official confirmed Thursday that eight soldiers have been detained and taken to a military prison for their possible involvement in events surrounding the 2014 disappearance of 43 students from a rural teacher's college in southern Mexico.

The eight are awaiting the possible filing of charges by civilian prosecutors, said the official, who was not authorized to be quoted by name.

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In September, the Attorney General's Office came under fire for cancelling some 21 arrest orders for suspects -- including 16 members of the military -- without explanation. It was not clear whether the eight arrested this week were among those arrest warrants were previously withdrawn.

Security forces abducted the students from buses in Iguala on Sept. 26, 2014, and turned them over to a local drug gang. New revelations implicate the military in the disappearances, but the motive for the students' abduction remains unclear, though there is growing evidence it may have involved police and military collusion with drug traffickers.

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Soldiers charged with abuses against civilians must be tried by civilian courts in Mexico, but can be held at military prisons. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)