Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador account for the majority of migrants arriving at the US southern border as gang violence and lack of economic opportunities are the main reasons migrants give for leaving.
Guatemalan migration authorities say some 3,500 out of 4,000 people who had gathered in Vada Hondo have already been returned to Honduras, several hundred children among them.
It was the latest effort by Guatemalan authorities to push back the caravan, which authorities said numbered close to 9,000 people, within hours of its departure for the US from Honduras last week.
Honduran migrants clashed with Guatemalan police who fired tear gas to those trying to cross into the US.
Guatemala blocks part of caravan of migrants who're trying to reach United States to escape poverty, unemployment, and aftermath of two devastating hurricanes amid coronavirus pandemic.
Several thousand Honduran migrants, driven by deepening poverty and unemployment, begin walking toward Guatemala in hope of warm reception by US authorities under Joe Biden's administration.
US-Mexico border is a major crossing point for migrants fleeing poverty, drug-related violence and other woes in Mexico and Central America.
Lawmakers had previously approved $65,000 to pay for meals for themselves, but cut funding for coronavirus patients and human rights agencies.
The International Red Cross estimates that about 4.2 million people were affected by the back-to-back Category 4 hurricanes in November in Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala.
Demonstrations against President Alejandro Giammattei and the legislature erupted after the country's 2021 budget saw educational and health spending cuts.
Rescue operations have been slowed by destroyed roads and bridges, forcing authorities to bring in the military and use helicopters and speedboats for rescue operations.
Officials from the Guatemalan Migration Institute say some 3,000 people have crossed the border without submitting to a Covid-19 test.
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