Panama launches US-backed deportation flights aimed at discouraging migrants

By Elida Moreno

PANAMA CITY (Reuters) - The first flight of deported migrants left Panama early on Tuesday, part of a new strategy to reduce the mostly U.S.-bound flow of people that crosses the treacherous jungle connecting Central and South America.

Financed by Washington, the flights come less than three months before November's U.S. presidential election. They mark a new means of addressing migration, which has emerged as a top issue in the contest between former Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.

The first flight took off from Panama City carrying 29 Colombians, all with criminal records in their home country and apprehended after crossing the Darien Gap jungle connecting Colombia with Panama. The deportees were led to the plane shackled and handcuffed.

More than half a million migrants crossed the Darien Gap last year, a record high, led by fleeing Venezuelans and others from across the Americas and beyond.

The deportation flights will increase in frequency. They form part of a July deal between U.S. officials and Panama's new President Jose Mulino, who campaigned on a pledge to end his country's status as a transit point.

Panama's migration head Roger Mojica told a press conference that efforts to deport migrants from nations besides Colombia are ongoing, including Ecuador and India. But he noted that deporting Venezuelans will be more complicated given Panama's suspension of diplomatic relations with Venezuela after its disputed presidential election last month.

Marlen Piñeiro, an official with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said the goal of the deportation flights is simple.

"The message we're sending is very clear: Darien is no longer a route," she said, stressing that migrants must opt for only legal options to enter the United States.

U.S. officials have previously disclosed a $6-million budget for the flights and are training Panamanians. They said the repatriations are implemented in accordance with Panama's laws.

(Reporting by Elida Moreno in Panama City; Additional reporting by Ted Hesson in Washington; Writing by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Rod Nickel)