From February: 'Help us': Hundreds deported from US held in Panama hotel
19 February 2025
Cecilia Barría, Santiago Vanegas and Ángel Bermúdez
BBC News Mundo
In a room at the luxury Decápolis Hotel in Panama City, two girls hold a piece of paper to the window with a written message. "Please help us," it reads.
The hotel offers its clients rooms with sea views, has two exclusive restaurants, a swimming pool, a spa and private transportation. But it has now become a "temporary custody" centre housing 299 undocumented migrants deported from the US, the Panamanian government said on Tuesday.
Some migrants raise their arms and cross them at the wrists to indicate that they are deprived of their freedom. Others hang small signs with other messages such as: "We are not safe in our country."
The Trump administration has pledged to deport millions of people who crossed illegally into the US. Those in the Panama City hotel arrived on three flights last week, after President José Raúl Mulino agreed that Panama would become a "bridge" country for deportees.
Getty Images
Migrants in the Decápolis Hotel try to catch the attention of those outside
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