Summer of violence: Shocking photos show blood-filled streets, clubs of Acapulco, Mexico in 2016 Some killers are reportedly using jet-skis to carry out their deadly missions.

Graphic photos capture the violence and destruction that marked the summer of 2016 in Acapulco, Mexico, a former tourist haven. Graphic photos capture the violence and destruction that marked the summer of 2016 in Acapulco, Mexico, a former tourist haven. Photo: PEDRO PARDO/AFP/Getty Images Photo: PEDRO PARDO/AFP/Getty Images Image 1 of / 21 Caption Close Summer of violence: Shocking photos show blood-filled streets, clubs of Acapulco, Mexico in 2016 1 / 21 Back to Gallery

Decapitated bodies line the streets of Acapulco, Mexico, a once-popular destination spot now a place where beach-goers carry small bags containing with weapons for their protection as cartels fight for turf.

The former tourist haven, with a population of 810,000, ranks as one of the most violent cities in the world. In 2015, a year that saw 1,170 killings, the city had a murder rate of 111 per 100,000 inhabitants. Even before that, Acapulco was dubbed “Guerrero’s Iraq” in 2012..

The upsurge in killings has made the city one of Mexico's most violent places, scaring away what international tourism remained and recently prompted the U.S. government to bar its employees from traveling to Acapulco for any reason.

RELATED: Mexico's drug cartels have turned a tourist mecca into 'Guerrero's Iraq'

The Daily Mail reported in February that some have taken to using jet-skis to kill people in the city. A man, using a 9mm pistol, pulled up to a beach on a jet ski, shot someone on the beach three times in the chest and then headed back to the jet ski where his accomplice was waiting for him.

There are conflicts between the Sinaloa cartel and other groups, Mike Vigil, a former chief of international operations for the US Drug Enforcement Administration, told Business Insider.

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On July 31, local officials found three corpses in a secret cave near a neighborhood, and days before a woman was found dead in a taxi after a police-involved shooting.

RELATED: Masked assassins for the Juárez Cartel in Mexico shown holding guns in leaked photos

Photos show dismembered bodies litter the streets of the city once-known for its picturesque views, beaches and nightlife as police officers survey the area. One image shows a slain man’s body lying still on Papagayo Beach outside a gift shop.

Click through the photos to see what daily life in Acapulco is like.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

kbradshaw@express-news.net

Twitter: @kbrad5