MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Mexican National Guard fires tear gas to prevent migrant caravan crossing from Guatemala

Central Americans, from the “2020 Caravan” of some 3,500 undocumented migrants, gathered on the Guatemalan side of the Suchiate River at dawn (Pic AFP)

Hundreds of Central Americans from a new migrant caravan tried to force their way into Mexico on Monday by crossing the river that divides the country from Guatemala, prompting the National Guard to fire tear gas.

The Central Americans, from the so-called “2020 Caravan” of around 3,500 undocumented migrants, gathered on the Guatemalan side of the Suchiate River at dawn, demanding migration authorities let them continue their journey to the United States.

When authorities did not immediately respond, the migrants began fording the river, which is shallow this time of year.

Mexican troops fired tear gas in an attempt to force them back. Scores of migrants, many with cloths tied around their faces to protect them from the tear gas, pelted the military police guarding the river with large stones, as the latter sheltered behind riot shields.

Mexican president Lopez Obrador's government faces intense pressure from president Donald Trump, who last year threatened to impose steep tariffs on Mexico if it did not do more to stop a surge of undocumented Central Americans arriving at the US-Mexican border.