100 migrants moved to Panama jungle facility

A group of nearly 100 migrants deported from the US to Panama last week has been moved from a hotel in the capital to the Darien jungle region in the south of the country, Panama's government said on Wednesday.

In a statement, Panama's security ministry said of the 299 migrants deported from the US in recent days, 13 had been repatriated to their countries of origin while another 175 remained in the hotel in Panama City awaiting onward journeys after agreeing to return home.

The migrants have been staying at the hotel under the protection of local authorities and with the financial support of the United States through the UN-related International Organization for Migration and the UN refugee agency, according to the Panamanian government.

The migrants include people from Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Vietnam, according to Panama's president, Jose Raul Mulino, who has agreed with the US to receive non-Panamanian deportees.

The process has been criticized by human rights groups that worry migrants could be mistreated and also fear for their safety if they are ultimately returned to violent or war-torn countries of origin, such as Afghanistan.