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Panama unveils deportation flights to China, India and Ecuador to stem US-bound migration
- For years, would-be migrants from South America and beyond have sought to cross the dangerous Darién Gap jungle on their way to the US
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Panama’s government announced on Thursday additional deportation flights for migrants apprehended in the Central American nation to China, India and Ecuador, in a bid to reduce of flow of mostly US-bound migration.
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Panama’s recently-inaugurated President Jose Mulino, who campaigned on a pledge to end his nation’s status as a major migrant transit point, made the announcement during his weekly press conference.
Financed by Washington, the deportation flights kicked off earlier this week with a first planeload of Colombian migrants.
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The flights come less than three months before November’s US presidential election, where unlawful migration has emerged as a major issue.
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