Thousands of people took to the streets of Culiacán on Sunday to demand an end to the violence that has turned their city into a war zone, which is the kind of thing you'd think wouldn't require a mass protest but here we are.

The state of Sinaloa has seen murders and disappearances skyrocket since two factions of the Sinaloa cartel began a bloody war two years ago. Residents dressed in white held up posters of missing loved ones and signs reading "We don't want fear, we want peace" - a refreshingly straightforward policy proposal that somehow hasn't been implemented yet.

More than three million people live in Sinaloa, and many say the war between the rival factions - known as Los Chapitos and La Mayiza - has blighted their lives. The BBC reports from the Mexican city turned into a war zone by the drug cartel feud.

The march was scheduled to coincide with the second anniversary of the conflict's start. The feud broke out after the arrest of wanted drug lord Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada in the US. His followers, La Mayiza, allege he was betrayed by the son of the infamous founder of the Sinaloa cartel, Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, and have turned on members of his faction, Los Chapitos. Nothing says "family business" quite like turning on your former allies.

The two factions regularly carry out ambushes, drive-by shootings and erect roadblocks by hijacking trucks, which they set alight. Residents of Culiacán have been caught up in this internecine war. Not only has the number of murders and disappearances shot up in the state but also those of extortions and robberies, official figures suggest. So, basically, the full menu of criminal enterprise.

Sunday's protest was organised by relatives of victims, local businesses, civil society groups and the Catholic church. Businessman Sergio Esquer told AFP news agency that more than 5,000 businesses had closed since the start of the feud. "That's the tragedy Sinaloa is experiencing," Esquer, who is a leader in the centre-left opposition party Movimiento Ciudadano, said.

The event started with a Mass in which the bishop of Culiacán called on members of the warring groups to put an end to their violence. "Stop, look at what's happening, look at the affected families, look at the young people and at our city. No amount of power, of money, territory or ambition is worth more than a human life," he said. A radical concept, we know.

Among those who attended the protest were relatives of a one-year-old boy who died after being hit by a bullet in the head during a shootout in the city last week. As well as the wave of violence, Sinaloa state has also been hit by political upheaval in recent months.

In April, US prosecutors accused the state's governor, Rubén Rocha, and nine other current and former officials of conspiring with Los Chapitos to smuggle drugs into the US. Rocha, who has denied any wrongdoing, stepped down temporarily while Mexican prosecutors opened an investigation of their own into the allegations. Three weeks ago, he returned to his post, but just days later requested another leave of absence after President Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on social media, without directly naming him, that "power without principles becomes arrogance." Notorious drug cartel leader Ismael Zambada sentenced to life in US prison. US charges Mexican governor and other leaders with aiding drug cartel.