Panama City, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Panama's security minister stated on Tuesday that over half of the migrants deported from the United States to Panama, a transit point in recent days, have agreed to voluntary repatriations to their home countries mainly in Asia and the Middle East.
The migrants, part of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration crackdown on illegal migration, totaling 299, have been housed at a hotel in Panama City under local authorities' protection and with financial assistance from the United States, facilitated by the International Organization for Migration and the UN refugee agency, according to Security Minister Frank Abrego.
Abrego disclosed, "Today I can confirm that 171 of the migrants have opted to go home voluntarily." He noted that the remainder will depart gradually once the UN arranges their repatriation.
During this transition, these migrants are expected to be relocated to a shelter near the Darien Gap jungle in southern Panama, which acts as a link between Central America and South America.
Following discussions with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this month, Panama's President Jose Raul Mulino revealed that an agreement signed in July with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security could potentially be expanded to include repatriations of Venezuelan, Colombian, and Ecuadorean migrants from Panama.