MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican soldiers killed seven suspected gang members in a weekend gun battle in the north of the country, the Chihuahua state attorney general’s office said on Sunday.

According to a statement on the attorney general’s website, a convoy of 15 soldiers was passing near the town of La Grulla in Chihuahua state around 2 p.m. local time (1900 GMT) on Saturday when a group of men opened fire on them.

Five people died at the scene and one more was killed a short distance away, the statement said. Another man was found dead 4 km (2.5 miles) from the scene.

The suspected gang members were wearing bulletproof vests and carrying assault rifles, the statement said.

Chihuahua state, which borders the United States, has suffered from years of drug-related gang violence. Across Mexico, more than 100,000 people have been killed since 2007.