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Panama says migration through border with Colombia is down since President Mulino took office
PANAMA CITY (AP) — Migration through the Darien Gap dividing Colombia and Panama has declined significantly this month since Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino took office and ordered authorities to get control of the dense jungle frontier, the country’s 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 – more than half Venezuelans – 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’s 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 “humanitarian corridor.”