MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Authorities on Friday intensified the search for three journalists believed kidnapped by armed men in the south of Mexico, which press freedom groups consider among the world's most dangerous countries for reporters. The attorney general's office in the state of Guerrero on Thursday said it was investigating the disappearance of five people in the tourist town of Taxco, among them journalists Marco Toledo, Silvia Arce and Alberto Sanchez. Carlos Monge, communications chief for the attorney general's office, said searches would be reinforced with participation from the state prosecutors' office, the state search commission, state police, National Guard and the Army. Fifteen vans with personnel from various law enforcement agencies were deployed from the state capital to Taxco, Monge said. Mexico is among the world's deadliest countries for journalists, with five journalists killed so far this year, according to Article 19.

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Persons: Marco Toledo, Silvia Arce, Alberto Sanchez, Carlos Monge, Monge, Toledo, Arce, Sanchez, Arce's, Raul Cortes Fernandez, Alistair Bell Organizations: MEXICO CITY, National Guard, Army, El Locations: MEXICO, Mexico, Guerrero, Taxco, Toledo