Thousands in mass wedding in one of the Mexico's most dangerous cities

JUAREZ, Mexico - A university gymnasium in the Mexican city of Juarez became the venue for a mass wedding organised by the state government.

2,500 couples packed into the auditorium to say "I do" in the mass ceremony in the northern state of Chihuahua on Monday.

The couples and their guests were entertained with live mariachi music and shows.

Raffle gifts were drawn amongst the participating couples, including small home appliances and two houses.

Chihuahua governor Cesar Duarte officiated over the wedding service, calling on the couples over a loud speaker to make their vows.

Couples of all ages took part in the ceremony, some underage and some more than 70 years old.

Couples who had been living together for a while, some of them with children , participated in the event.

Marisela Castaneda, who wed her boyfriend at Monday's ceremony, said she had always wanted to get married on February 14 (Valentines Day).

"We thought it was a good opportunity, so we made the decision and did it," she said.

The city of Juarez, which borders the United States, has become one of the world's most dangerous cities amid a fierce turf war between the Sinaloa and Juarez drug cartels.

More than three thousand people were killed last year in the city of 1.3 (m) million residents.

(Copyright 2011: ABC NEWS)