India is collaborating with Panamanian authorities to ensure the safety of Indian migrants recently deported from the U.S. to Panama. The Indian embassy confirmed that the deportees are currently secure in a hotel, receiving necessary care, and that consular access has been established. This follows reports of nearly 300 deportees from various countries, including India, displaying distress signals from the hotel. Panama’s Security Minister stated these individuals are being cared for under a migration agreement with the U.S., emphasizing they are not being detained against their will, despite claims to the contrary.
Panama City:
India is collaborating with the Panamanian authorities to ensure the safety and welfare of Indian migrants deported by the United States to Panama. The Indian embassy in Panama has confirmed that the migrants are secure in the hotel where they are being held.
“We have been informed by Panamanian authorities that a group of Indians has arrived in Panama from the US. They are safe and well-cared for in a hotel that provides all necessary facilities. The embassy team has gained consular access, and we are closely working with the host government to ensure their well-being,” the embassy stated in a post on X.
Panamanian authorities have informed us that a group of Indians has arrived in Panama from the US
They are safe and well-cared for in a
Hotel that provides all necessary facilities
The embassy team has gained consular access
We are closely collaborating with the host government to ensure their well-being pic.twitter.com/fdFT82YVhS
— India in Panama, Nicaragua, Costa Rica (@IndiainPanama) February 20, 2025
This statement followed a report indicating that nearly 300 individuals from various nations—including Iran, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and China—who were deported from the United States under President Donald Trump, were being held in a hotel in Panama. Some deportees displayed urgent messages for “help” on their hotel room windows, expressing “We are not safe (sic) in our country”.
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However, Panama has refuted claims of holding migrants against their will after individuals were spotted holding signs that pleaded for assistance from the hotel windows.
Panama’s Security Minister Frank Abrego stated that these illegal migrants from the US are receiving medical care and food at the hotel as part of a bilateral migration agreement between Panama and the US. However, they are prohibited from leaving the hotel while international authorities organize their return to their home countries.
The US has been utilizing Panama as a transit location for deportees due to challenges in directly deporting individuals to certain countries. Costa Rica is also expected to receive a similar flight of third-country deportees on Wednesday.
During last year’s US election campaign, Trump took a tough stance against undocumented migrants, labeling some as “monsters” and “animals.” On his first day in office last month, Trump declared a national emergency at the southern US border and pledged to deport “millions and millions” of migrants.