Migrant Crossings in Darién Gap Reach Lowest Levels in Recent Years

Migrants at the Temporary Reception Center for Migrants in Lajas Blancas, in the jungle province of Darién, east of Panama City, Panama, on Sept. 26, 2024. Martin Bernetti/AFP via Getty Images

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on July 31 that migrant crossings in the Darién Gap have dropped dramatically compared with the peak in 2023.

“Migrant crossings at the Darien Gap have dropped 99.98 [percent] for the months of May and June 2025 compared to a peak under the Biden Administration in August 2023,” the DHS announced in a July 31 statement.

“This is a massive decline in illegal migration through one of the key channels normally utilized by would-be illegal aliens to invade our country.”

In May, 13 migrants crossed the Panama border through the Darién jungle, and in June, the number dropped to 10, a considerable decrease compared with the peak of 81,946 illegal crossings recorded in August 2023.

The DHS stated that the United States now has “the most secure border in history” and that the department has focused on deporting those who break the nation’s laws.

“The world is hearing our message that America’s borders are closed to lawbreakers,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the statement.

The Darién jungle crossing, also known as the Darién Gap, is one of the most dangerous in the world. It encompasses 5,000 square kilometers (about 1,900 square miles) of tropical forests, rugged mountains, swamps, and fast-flowing rivers in Panama and Colombia.

Those who travel the six- to 11-day Darién Gap journey on foot—a little more than 1,000 kilometers (about 621 miles) long—face temperatures of up to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, which can quickly lead to dehydration and heat exhaustion.

They can also be affected by mosquito bites and diseases such as dengue fever and malaria or face attacks from wild animals.

Rainfall also poses a challenge for migrants. Because it is a tropical area, rain can last for long periods of time, affecting people’s health and causing some to become lost in the jungle.

“The dangerous Darien Gap trek is notorious for exposing migrants, including children and the most vulnerable, to sexual abuse, trafficking, and exploitation,” McLaughlin said.

A report by the Panamanian National Immigration Service published in January revealed that at least 302,203 foreigners of various nationalities, the majority of whom were Venezuelans (209,897), passed through the dangerous Darién jungle in 2024.

Historical statistics on the flow of irregular migrants into Panama indicate that 22,102 foreigners arrived in 2019, 8,549 in 2020, and 133,653 in 2021. The number rose to 248,248 in 2022. It was higher in 2023, reaching 520,085, according to a statement from Migración Panamá published in July 2024.

In 2025, there has been a drastic decrease in irregular crossings through the Darién, with a total of 2,927 crossings as of June 30.

During an accountability event on Jan. 6, Panamanian Public Security Minister Frank Ábrego indicated that in 2024 alone, at least 55 migrants died trying to cross the Darién, “a number that may be even higher given the difficulty of finding bodies in that dangerous border jungle,” he said, according to Spanish news agency EFE.