Intense minutes passed when one of the Honduran police officers who was in front of the first reinforcement, was wounded in the head with a stone, while a woman fell unconscious; as for the Guatemalan band, a wall of armed agents with military tanks had been waiting for them since the early hours of the morning.
The caravan of thousands of Hondurans who left their country in the north this Friday with the aim of reaching the United States, violently broke two police cordons during the night at the El Florido customs point and crossed into Guatemalan territory.
Efe was able to ascertain that in the incident there were injuries between police and migrants.
One of the Honduran police officers at the front of the first reinforcement was wounded in the head with a stone, while in Guatemalan territory, a woman fell unconscious when migrants, about 2,000, were face to face with the forces of the order of the neighboring country.
migrants, That in the last hours of the day they had arrived at the point the Florido, after discarding to go away by Hot Water, in the department of Ocotepeque, they far outnumbered the police of the two Honduran detentions and chanting the national anthem they crossed into Guatemala.
As they move toward the American dream, more migrants have joined. More than 4,000 crossed the border into Guatemala on Friday night. EFE photo
Moment in which in group the migrants crossed by force one of the police detentions Friday night. EFE photo
On the Guatemalan side, the Hondurans reached the first police cordon, which was unarmed, and asked the migrants to be ordered.
In addition, they were reiterated that in order to continue on their route they had to register and show proof that they are not infected with covid-19.
The decision not to confront the migrants, according to a police officer, was made after finding that there were many families with minors in the group. Using tear gas with children and in the dark could have been fatal, he detailed.
In the second cordon of Guatemalan security, Efe was able to ascertain that its elements do carry weapons, and that in the estates of the Guatemalan customs point there are tanks in support of the security forces.
A woman fainted from the Guatemalan gang when migrants were confronted by law enforcement. EFE photo
EFE photo
When migrants were expected, Men, women and children they would reach an agreement to continue the caravan in the early hours of saturday a large group, chanting the national anthem faced the first police cordon and in a race did the same with the second and crossed to Guatemalan soil.
During the incident that lasted a few minutes, there were stones and sticks thrown, and several people, including police and migrants, were injured, in Honduran soil.
Honduran authorities have not reported the incident which was recorded around 8pm local time (2am GMT), a few hours after the migrants arrived in Florida, after they decided to change their route plan, which in principle was to leave by Hot Water, both borders with Guatemala.
The Florido is located in the department of Copán, eleven kilometers from the Mayan archeological site of Copán Ruins, one of the main tourist sites in Honduras.
The possibility of leaving until the early hours of Saturday was discussed by the migrants, because it was night and because many of his caravan companions were late, the Honduran José Bardales had told Efe hours before.
Police were waiting for the arrival of the crowded caravan. EFE photo
Around 21:00 local time (03:00 GMT) about 300 Honduran immigrants were stationed on the road, within their country, in front of the customs point of El Florido, perhaps waiting for Saturday to leave regularly.
Efe wanted to know the opinion of several of them, but they preferred not to speak.
The Guatemalan Migration Institute reported today that about 2,000 Honduran migrants are at the border waiting to cross the country to reach the United States, while local security forces try to block their passage.
The body has indicated that the caravan exceeded Honduran police checkpoints at the El Florido border crossing, located in the department of Chiquimula, about 200 kilometers west of the Guatemalan capital.