Members of the caravan of thousands of Honduran migrants reached the Guatemala-Mexico border early on Thursday.
The bulk of the caravan reached the Mexican border late Thursday and hundreds of Mexican police were waiting and ready.
Chaos erupted as the Honduran caravan faced off with Mexican police on the border town of Tecun Uman.
The organizer of Pueblo Sin Fronteras, Irineo Mujica was arrested by Mexican police and thrown into a white van.
The Daily Mail reported:
A smaller group walked to the border crossing but was blocked by Guatemalan police. They eventually retreated to await the rest of the caravan. The migrants, many who started traveling in small groups up to eight weeks ago, are covering around 30 miles a day.
Irineo Mujica, the director of the organisation Pueblo Sin Fronteras, who was detained at a march in Ciudad Hidalgo, southern Mexico when he led a caravan of hundreds of migrants towards the US border last spring has been arrested Thursday.
Mujica’s organisation shared the following statement on Facebook: ‘He was arrested along with three migrants by about 20 [immigration] agents and about 15 federal police as they marched toward a church as part of a welcome march for the Caminata del Migrante.’
Mexican immigration officials claimed that Mujica, who has dual U.S. and Mexican citizenship, attacked immigration agents and local and federal police after he was asked for his identification during the protest.
The immigration agency added that he was detained by authorities for resisting and damaging property.
Video of Irineo Mujica being arrested:
ALERTA: Momentos en que fue detenido y golpeado el activista y defensor de derechos humanos Irineo Mujica fe la organizacion @PuebloSF por agentes de migracion y policia federal en la localidad fronteriza de Ciudad Hidalgo, México.@CNDH @CIDH @AIMexico #CaravanaMigrante pic.twitter.com/ghB7xHlMcU
— Ruben Figueroa (@RubenFigueroaDH) October 18, 2018
Photo of Pueblo Sin Fronteras organizer Irineo Mujica:
URGENTE: Agentes de la @PoliciaFedMx detienen al activista y defensor de derechos humanos Irineo Mujica, en la localidad de Ciudad Hidalgo.@CNDH @ONU_derechos @CIDH pic.twitter.com/QQWRUzyriv
— Ruben Figueroa (@RubenFigueroaDH) October 18, 2018
On Thursday, President Trump issued a blunt warning to Mexico and other Central American nations over their failure to stop illegal migrants and criminal cartels targeting the U.S. southern border, saying he would send the military and shut down the southern border.
Mexico responded by sending hundreds of federal police to the Guatemala-Mexico border.
It is being reported that a small group of Hondurans successfully crossed over into Mexico late Thursday night.
The breakaway group crossed over the Succhiate River separating Guatemala and Mexico, according to an internal U.S. document obtained by NBC News. They are soon to be followed by a group of 2,000-3,000 migrants who have congregated in Tecun Uman, Guatemala, located about 25 miles south of the border crossing at Tapachula, Mexico.
