In addition to this original group, more than 1,000 migrants in a second caravan that forced its way across the river from Guatemala have begun arriving in the southern Mexico city of Tapachula.
About 2,000 migrants began walking north from El Salvador's capital on Wednesday, making it the third group to try and reach the US.
Mr Trump made clear Thursday he will do everything in his power to stop them, dispatching extra troops, threatening to shut border entirely and saying in an afternoon press conference the military would consider rocks thrown at active troops "firearms".
Donald Trump gave a press conference last night about immigration, before heading to a 'Make America Great Again' rally.
The president migrants who make it to the border and throw stones might be shot by the US military. In a speech at the White House filled with falsehoods, the president said he was seeking to limit asylum claims only to those who applied at legal entry points. He claimed the move was necessary because a series of migrant caravans– still up to a 1,000 miles from the border – was considered by some people to be “an invasion”.
“Asylum is not a programme for those living in poverty. There are billions of people in the world living at the poverty level. The United States cannot possibly absorb them all,” he said.
With harsh conditions and scarce supplies, many of those in the migrant caravan are suffering with various illnesses.
Around 2,000 people in the caravan are thought to be children, and the long treks is taking a toll on many of them. Rights groups travelling with the caravan say children are fainting and vomiting from dehydration and exhaustion.
The travelling caravan recently arrived in the Southern Mexico town of Matias Romero, according to The Associated Press.
After failing to get the bus transport they had been hoping for, the migrants were forced to trek 40 miles from Juchitan, Oaxaca. After nightfall, the group decided they would leave at 5 a.m. local time Friday toward the coastal state of Veracruz, with their destination either the town of Donaji or Sayula de Aleman.
That's all for today's coverage on updates surrounding the migrant caravans travelling towards the United States' southern border. Be sure to check back tomorrow as we keep you informed on the latest.
Donald Trump has held a press conference claiming the US military will consider rocks thrown at active troops as "firearms," though he stopped short of announcing a hard-line policy that would reportedly deny asylum for refugees arriving at the border who do not enter through a port of entry.
Check out The Independent's live coverage of the announcement below.
A woman and three children wait for a ride on the roadside, as a thousands-strong caravan of Central Americans hoping to reach the U.S. border moves onward from Juchitan, Oaxaca state, Mexico, Thursday 1 November 2018.
A mother embraces her daughter as they wait for a ride on the side of the road along with other Central Americans, outside Juchitan, Oaxaca state, Mexico, 1 November 2018.
Migrants with small children stand in the back of a parked truck, in hopes that the driver will give them a ride, as a thousands-strong caravan of Central Americans hoping to reach the US border moves onward from Juchitan, Oaxaca state, Mexico, Thursday, 1 November 2018.
Britany Tesorero, from El Salvador, poses for a photo at a camp set up by a caravan of thousands of Central American migrants in Juchitan, Mexico, Wednesday, 31 October 2018.
Boys playfully try to test the boundaries of stretchy leashes attaching them to an adult, as a thousands-strong caravan of Central Americans hoping to reach the U.S. border takes a rest day in Juchitan, Oaxaca state, Mexico, Wednesday, 31 Oct. 2018.
Erlin Troches, a 43-year-old Honduran migrant from the city of Santa Barbara, carries an image of the Virgin of Guadalupe that was given to him by a priest in southern Mexico, as he walks along with a thousands-strong caravan of Central Americans hoping to reach the US border
Leticia Reyes, aunt of migrant Henry Adalid Diaz Reyes, grieves during her nephew's wake at the family's home in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, late Wednesday, 31 October 2018. Guatemalan firefighters confirm the 26-year-old Honduran migrant died of a head wound from a gunshot during a stand-off on the Guatemala-Mexico border where a second caravan of Central American migrants threw rocks and used sticks against Mexico police to push its way across the border and into Mexico.
John Bolton has announced tough new measures against Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua as migrant caravans travel towards the US-Mexico border — and the same day the United Nations General Assembly called on the Trump administration to lift Cuba’s embargo.
Mr Bolton promised a tough stance by the Trump administration toward "dictators and despots near our shores" and singled out Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua in a speech in Miami, which is home to large numbers of migrants from Cuba and Venezuela.
A new report looks at the impact travelling countless miles in a caravan has had on child migrants making the arduous journey.
“These are human beings,” said Alex Mensing, an organizer for Pueblo Sin Fronteras, the immigration rights group that organized the caravan. “The children on the caravan don’t know what a border means.”
Osman Joel Hernandez, a six-year-old migrant boy, part of a caravan of thousands traveling from Central America en route to the United States, plays with a hula hoop as he rests in a makeshift camp in Juchitan, Mexico, October 31, 2018. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
