Nearly 70,000 migrants will cross the Darien River, heading to the United States in 2024

(CNN in Spanish) — Nearly 70,000 migrants have crossed the border Darren the forestwhich separates Colombia from Panama, is on its way to the north of the continent so far in 2024, Panamanian Security Minister Juan Manuel Pino said on Sunday.

The official explained in a message published on the Ministry of Security’s account on the social networking site

He added that there are an additional 24 thousand if compared to the same date last year.

As of Sunday, Panama's National Immigration Service had not published figures on arrivals through Darien for February, although it reported at the beginning of the month that nearly 40,000 migrants crossed the jungle between January and February this year.

According to the organization, 90% of this number were from the Americas and 10% came from other continents.

Pino stated that he hopes that the crossing of migrants through that region will exceed the number recorded in 2023, when the population of Panama reached 520,085 people.

“This is what we are witnessing because of the scenarios we see in the Southern Hemisphere,” the minister said, without going into details. “We are committed to our mission and the humanitarian aspect.”

The 106-kilometre journey across the Darien River takes migrants from Colombia to Panama, a crucial step for those hoping to reach the United States and Canada.