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Guatemala Sends Back 3,500 Migrants in Honduran Caravan

Associated Press reports Guatemala has sent back almost 3,500 Honduran migrants from a caravan that was heading to the United States over concerns they might spread Covid-19, President Alejandro Giammattei announced.

In a televised message broadcast on Sunday, President Alejandro Giammattei said Guatemalan security forces were able to “contain” the caravan which he said posed a health threat due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“We are experiencing a pandemic in Guatemala which has cost us to control with months of efforts,” said the president, adding it was an “obligation” to reduce the risk of further contagion.

According to the Guatemalan Migration Institute (IGM), the caravan entered eastern Guatemala on their journey to the United States on Thursday, pushing over a military cordon on the Corinto border before splitting into groups to reach Mexico, which has closed its borders.

“In recent years, thousands of Central American migrants traveling in large groups have crossed into Mexico, with the aim of reaching the US border,” Associated Press reports.

Trump, for some time has threatened Mexico with steep tariffs if it does not do more to stop the influx of undocumented migrants.

By Friday and Saturday, hundreds of Guatemalan police and military personnel met the migrants with a large roadblock , forcing them to turn back.

Fifteen people from the caravan requested refuge in Guatemala, according to the IGM.

“We respect the right to migration as long as it is regulated and the requirements and protocols that have been established are complied with, and not as happened with this group of migrants who broke into our country with violence,” Giammattei said.

Covid-19 has infected 93,963 people and killed 3,293 since March in Guatemala, a country of about 17 million inhabitants, according to Associated Press.

Guatemala began reopening in July after four months of restrictions to curb the pandemic.

 

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About Catherine Smith

Catherine Smith is a newcomer to Washington D.C. She met and married an American journalist and moved to D.C. from the U.K. She graduated with a B.A. in Graphics, Media, and Communications and worked in design and retail in the U.K.

Photo: (Photo credit should read ALFREDO ESTRELLA/AFP via Getty Images)