PANAMA CITY (AP) 鈥� Migration through the Darien Gap dividing Colombia and Panama has declined significantly this month since Panamanian and ordered authorities to get control of the dense jungle frontier, the country鈥檚 border police said Wednesday.
Still, migration through the Darien remains close to what it was in a record-breaking 2023, when more than 500,000 migrants 鈥� more than half Venezuelans 鈥� made the treacherous journey.
The National Border Service reported Wednesday that 11,363 migrants had crossed the border since July 1, about 9,000 fewer than the same period last year.
The agency鈥檚 director general, Jorge Gobea, attributed the reduction to the installation of about 3 miles (5 kilometers) of barbed wire on five trails in an effort to funnel migrants to a 鈥渉umanitarian corridor.鈥�
He also said the government鈥檚 announcement of its more aggressive efforts and plan to deport migrants back to their countries, as well as heavy rains, could have affected the number of border crossers.
Mulino took office promising to stop illegal migration through the Darien Gap. for those migrants deemed inadmissible, but those flights have not started.
So far this year, more than 212,000 migrants have entered Panama through the Darien. Besides Venezuelans, others crossing include migrants from Ecuador, Colombia and China.
Panama鈥檚 active efforts to stop and deport migrants would be a massive shift.
Under the outgoing administration, Panama had sought to help migrants cross the country quickly and in an orderly fashion. Migrants generally emerged from the jungle, registered with authorities and were swept across the country to the Costa Rican border.
Strengthening enforcement efforts in Panama could potentially reduce the number of migrants reaching the U.S. border, at least for a time until new routes are established. But it could also force migrants to use riskier paths and be a boon for smugglers.
U.S. arrests for illegally crossing the border from Mexico , the lowest month of Joe Biden鈥檚 presidency, according to figures released Monday by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Arrests totaled 83,536 in June, down from 117,901 in May, to mark the lowest tally since January 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said.
A seven-day average of daily arrests at the U.S.-Mexico border fell more than half by the end of June from that asylum processing would be halted when daily arrests reach 2,500, which they did immediately.
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Juan Zamorano, The Associated Press
