More than a dozen caravans have left Honduras for the U.S. since October 2018.  (Photo: EFE)

San Pedro Sula, January 15 (RHC)-- Hundreds of Hondurans left earlier Friday morning from the city of San Pedro Sula to join the new migrant caravan that seeks to reach the United States.  The new group hopes to reach the border point of Corinto to pass into Guatemala and join the group that left Thursday to escape the violence and poverty in the Central American country.

The first part of the caravan crossed into Guatemala on Thursday through blind spots on the border between the two countries where the Guatemalan government decreed a curfew, in the departments of Izabal, Zacapa, Chiquimula, Jutiapa, El Progreso, Petén and Santa Rosa.

In response to the arrival of the new Honduran migrant caravan, the Guatemalan government decreed a State of Prevention in seven of its departments, which allows it to prevent the passage of migrants.  In addition to the identity card, Guatemala requires migrants to provide negative proof of COVID-19.

At the beginning of this week, the governments of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico made a "strong call" to migrants from their countries who intend to travel in caravans to the United States, to avoid exposing unaccompanied and separated children and adolescents, because of the danger to which they are exposed.

More than a dozen caravans have left Honduras since October 2018 for the U.S. and have been prevented from entering the United States due to the deployment of thousands of border guards and military personnel ordered by Donlad Trump on the southern border with Mexico.