In Central America, tensions rise as soldiers aim to stop migrants

FILE PHOTO: A Guatemalan soldier patrols to prevent a group of Honduran migrants who are trying to reach the U.S. , from moving towards the Guatemala and Mexico border, as they sit outside the migrant shelter, in Tecun Uman, Guatemala October 3, 2020. REUTERS/Jose Torres

TAPACHULA, Mexico (Reuters) - Guatemalan and Honduran soldiers will be deployed to prevent new U.S.-bound migrant caravans from advancing, military officials said, amid growing desperation among those seeking to cross and signs that some groups will depart later this month.

Two devastating hurricanes late last year along with severe economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic have pushed millions of people in the already-poor region closer to hunger, leading to a steady rise in U.S.-bound migration through Mexico.