Venezuelans top Haitians as main crossers in Darien, Panama

PANAMA CITY (AP) — Venezuelan migrants replaced Haitians in January as the main group using the notoriously dangerous Darien Gap to cross from South America into Panama. In 2021, Haitians represented almost 80% of the approximately 130,000 migrants who used the jungle crossing. But security and foreign relations officials said Tuesday that in January,  more than half of the 4,702 migrants who crossed into Darien were Venezuelan. The monthly figure represents a decline from daily flows in 2021. The director of Panama’s national border service says the once-teeming Lajas Blancas migrant camp near Darien is now empty.