Panama on Saturday deported another 30 Colombian migrants who had entered the country through the Darién jungle border, part of the implementation of a recent agreement with the United States, the government reported.

A “deportation flight of migrants who had entered illegally through the Darién jungle” was carried out, the Ministry of Security said on its account X (formerly Twitter). Deputy Minister Luis Felipe Icaza specified that “30 Colombians, including six high-ranking individuals” had been deported.

Last Tuesday, the Panamanian government applied the agreement with Washington for the first time, deporting 29 Colombians with criminal records on a charter flight. These people had also entered the country via Darién, the inhospitable jungle on the Colombian-Panamanian border that has become a migration corridor for people trying to reach the United States.

Upon taking office on July 1, President José Raúl Mulino signed a migration agreement with the United States in which Washington committed to contributing six million dollars to finance the deportation of Panamanian migrants crossing the Darién.

“Little by little we will do what is necessary (to stem the flow of migrants through this jungle), but it gives me courage to see that we have started to reach an agreement with the United States,” Mulino said.

More than 520,000 people crossed the jungle in 2023, according to Panama’s official figures. This year, more than 231,000 people have already made the dangerous journey, including 153,577 Venezuelans, 14,598 Ecuadorians, 14,674 Colombians and 12,065 Chinese.

During the election campaign, Mulino had promised to “close” Darién to immigration. After taking power, however, he softened his statements and explained that he was not planning any “forced repatriations” but voluntary ones. He also only wanted to deport people with criminal records.

In this 575,000-hectare jungle, migrants face numerous natural dangers and are also at risk of being attacked, raped or killed by criminal gangs.