U.S. deports nearly 120 Asian migrants of different nationalities to Panama
The United States deported 119 people of different nationalities to Panama as part of a deal between the Trump administration and the Central American nation.
PANAMA CITY — The United States deported 119 people of different nationalities to Panama as part of an agreement between the Trump administration and the Central American nation, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino said Thursday.
The first flight from the U.S., carrying people from Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Vietnam, arrived on Wednesday, and two more will land soon, Mulino said at a news conference. In total the U.S. will send Panama 360 people on the three flights.
Before being returned to their respective countries, the deportees will be transferred to a shelter near the Darien — the jungle separating Central America from South America that countless migrants traverse in a bid to reach the U.S.
“Through a cooperation program with the U.S. government ... yesterday a U.S. Air Force flight arrived with 119 people of the most diverse nationalities in the world,” Mulino said.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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