That piece — 66 roadless miles of turbulent rivers, rugged mountains and venomous snakes — became known as the Darién Gap. Today, the journey through the gap is made more perilous by a criminal group and human traffickers who control the region, often extorting and sometimes sexually assaulting migrants. The number of migrants who have made the journey so far this year is more than triple the previous annual record set in 2016. But after the pandemic, which hit South America particularly hard, that surge has become a flood of desperate families. Their turn had come to board the boat that would take them to the edge of the jungle.

Source: bd News24 October 02, 2021 17:48 UTC