Members of a Central American migrant caravan violently attacked unarmed Mexican federal immigration officers with rocks and other blunt objects Tuesday after government officials tried to block the group from illegally crossing into Mexico from Guatemala.
Newly released video taken from inside one of the Mexican government vehicles shows a group of about 1,000 people walking down a road in Tapachula after refusing to turn around. Similar videos and pictures circulated by Mexican media confirm the incident took place Tuesday.
Federal immigration officers from Instituto Nacional de Migracion, Mexico’s national immigration agency, had lined up a handful of white vans and pickup trucks in a row to keep the caravan from passing by.
But as the caravan became increasingly rowdy, the Mexican officials ran back into their vehicles. One female officer yelled, “Vamanos,” Spanish for “Let’s go.”
Migrant caravan trying to enter Mexico illegally hurl rocks at Mexican officers trying to stop them.
Watch the officers panic and run for cover in their cars. You can hear the panic & the sound of rocks hitting their vehicles.
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) February 22, 2019
The vehicles began backing up, away from the group, but were unable to get away before members of the caravan caught up. Caravan members then began throwing large rocks at the government workers, most of whom were inside the vehicles.
The rocks broke windshields and windows, and the unarmed officers could be heard screaming as they ducked down into their seats to avoid being hit.
“Ow. Ow. Ow,” one woman yelled.
“Vamanos, vamanos,” another person screamed as the glass in the back of their pickup cab’s window was shattered by a rock.
The vehicles tried to outrun the group, honking for those at the front of the line to move faster.
The group was able to force immigration officers and federal police out of its way. The caravan is expected to travel to Ciudad Juarez, which is located just over the U.S.-Mexico border from El Paso, Texas.
Over the past year, a number of large caravans, some with thousands of people, have pushed their way into Mexico with the intent on getting to the U.S. border.
President Trump in November warned members of another migrant caravan that the military deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border would treat being attacked by rocks the same as a firearm attack.
“Anybody throwing stones, rocks — like they did to Mexico and the Mexican military, Mexican police, where they badly hurt police and soldiers of Mexico — we will consider that a firearm because there’s not much difference,” Trump told reporters during a press conference at the White House. “Because there’s not much difference when you get hit in the face with a rock.”
On Oct. 16, the Mexican government deployed hundreds of federal police, including General Commissioner Manelich Castilla, and officers from the National Institute of Migration, the country’s immigration agency, to Tapachula, Chiapas.
Four days later, the first of the two caravans from Central America arrived at the Guatemala-Mexico International Bridge. The group filled the entire bridge and attempted to push through to Mexico. Police unleashed tear gas and smoke canisters, injuring an unspecified number of migrants.
State Secretary Mike Pompeo said four police officers were injured as a result of the standoff.
The second group reached the Guatemala-Mexico border Sunday and was more violent than the first. Guatemala’s Interior Ministry said their police officers were pushed back by the caravan despite having set up road barriers to keep people from attempting to get past them.
Mexican officials said some in the group hit police with rocks, glass bottles, guns, and firebombs.
