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Mexico arrests suspects in killing of seven-year-old girl

FILE PHOTO: Funeral of seven-year-old Fatima Cecilia Aldrighett in Mexico City

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican law enforcement has arrested suspects in the killing of a seven-year-old girl whose murder rocked the capital with protests, Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum wrote in a post on Twitter on Wednesday.

The body of Fatima Cecilia Aldrighett was discovered over the weekend in a plastic garbage bag, sparking outrage over growing violence against women in Mexico.

"The alleged perpetrators of the femicide of the minor Fatima Cecilia were arrested in a town in the state of Mexico," Sheinbaum wrote.

Family members said hours were wasted after the girl went missing outside her school on Feb. 11, and earlier calls to social services for help went unanswered.

Earlier this week, protesters gathered outside the girl's home and school, while others took to social media to demand justice under the trending topic #JuticeForFatima.

In the wake of the protests, Mexico's lower house of congress has proposed toughening prison sentences for the murder of women and sexual abuse of minors.

(Reporting by Julia Love and Abraham Gonzalez; Editing by Sandra Maler)