Mexico City  - A former mayor of Michoacan state and the homicide department chief of Jalisco state were killed Friday in Mexico in the continuing endless wave of violence.

Police said former mayor Nicolas Leon Hernandez had been shot in the face and his body bore signs of torture. Also attached to his body was a message, apparently signed by La Familia Michoacana, one of the top six Mexican drug cartels.

Hernandez served two terms as mayor of the port of Lazaro Cardenas on the Pacific, some 550 kilometres southwest of Mexico City.

Mexico City  - Mexican Javier Aguirre was Friday designated to become Mexico's new football coach, replacing the Swede, Sven- Goran Eriksson.

Aguirre - the former coach of La Liga clubs Osasuna and Atletico Madrid, among others - coached Mexico for the 2002 World Cup.

In a brief statement the Mexican Football Federation said Aguirre, 50, would be formally presented to the media as coach on April 16.

Mexico City  - Sven-Goran Eriksson, who was sacked Thursday as Mexico's football coach, has good reason not to get too upset about the setback: the Swede earned some 7 million dollars in 10 months with the national team, the Mexican sports daily Record reported Friday.

"Sven-Goran Eriksson became the most costly investment in the history of Mexican football," the daily said.

Washington - Mexico got encouragement Wednesday from the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its application for a 47-billion-dollar credit line to get through the world economic crisis.

In a statement from London, where he is attending the G20 world finance summit in London, IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn said he would back the application for approval from the IMF board.

London - Mexican President Felipe Calderon was given a full military welcome, accompanied by pomp and pageantry, during his reception by Queen Elizabeth II for a state visit to Britain Monday.

The queen, 82, greeted the Mexican leader and his wife, Margarita Zavala, in bright sunshine at the historic Horseguards Parade ground at the start of the visit during which Calderon will take part in the Group of 20 (G20) summit meeting.

The couple will be guests of the queen and stay at Buckingham Palace for the duration of their visit.