Migrants from Afghanistan, Russia, Iran, and China, deported from the United States and left in limbo in Panama, have been moving from one embassy and consulate to another this week, desperately trying to secure asylum in any country willing to take them, reports AP.

Once the focus of international humanitarian attention just weeks ago, the deportees now fear that, with minimal legal and humanitarian aid and no clear path forward from authorities, they may soon be forgotten.

“After this, we have no idea what we will do,” said 29-year-old Hayatullah Omagh, who fled Afghanistan in 2022 following the Taliban’s takeover.

In February, the United States deported nearly 300 people from predominantly Asian nations to Panama. The Central American country was intended as a transit point for migrants from countries that were difficult for the U.S. to deport to, as the Trump administration sought to expedite removals. While some agreed to return to their home countries voluntarily, others, fearing persecution, refused and were sent to a remote camp in the Darién jungle for several weeks.

Earlier this month, Panama released the remaining migrants from the camp, giving them one month to leave the country. The government stated that they had declined assistance from international organisations, opting instead to make their own arrangements. However, with limited financial resources, no familiarity with Panama, and little to no knowledge of Spanish, the migrants have struggled.

Seeking asylum from one embassy to another

On Tuesday, around a dozen migrants visited foreign diplomatic missions in Panama’s capital, including the Canadian and British embassies as well as the Swiss and Australian consulates, hoping to initiate the asylum process. However, they were either turned away or advised to contact the embassies via phone or email. Their messages often received no response or a standard reply stating that the embassies could not assist them.

In one email, Omagh explained the reasons for his escape, pleading, “Please don’t let me be sent back to Afghanistan, where survival is impossible for me.”

The response from the Canadian Embassy in Panama stated, “The Embassy of Canada in Panama does not offer visa or immigration services, nor services for refugees. We are also not permitted to answer any questions regarding visas or immigration.”

At the British Embassy, a security guard handed the asylum-seekers a leaflet titled “Emergency Help for British People.” Meanwhile, at the Swiss consulate, the group was directed to contact the embassy in Costa Rica and given a printed sheet with general phone numbers and email addresses from the embassy’s website.

Canadian, British, and Australian diplomats in Panama did not respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press. The Swiss consulate denied claims that they had turned away the asylum-seekers.

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Stuck in limbo in Panama

The migrants had travelled halfway across the world, reached the U.S. border to seek asylum, and instead found themselves stranded in Panama—a country some had already passed through months earlier on their journey north.

Many of the deportees expressed willingness to seek asylum in Panama but were informed by both international aid groups and Panamanian authorities that obtaining refuge in the country would be difficult, if not impossible.

Álvaro Botero, who advocates for the migrants at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, said he was not surprised that embassies refused assistance, as such aid is typically reserved for extreme cases of political persecution. He also suggested that other governments may be reluctant to intervene due to potential diplomatic tensions with the Trump administration.

“It’s critical that these individuals are not forgotten,” Botero said. “They never chose to be sent to Panama, and now they are stranded with no idea of what to do, uncertain about their future, and unable to return home.”

Simultaneously, the Trump administration has restricted legal pathways at the U.S. southern border, intensified deportations, and suspended both its refugee resettlement programme and funding for organisations that could have supported the migrants now trapped in Panama.

Over the weekend, the Trump administration deported more than 200 Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador, detaining them in a maximum-security gang prison. Officials alleged—without providing evidence—that the individuals were members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang.

Few options left

On Thursday, the migrants visited the Panama offices of the U.N. refugee agency. Omagh reported that officials there informed them they could not assist with asylum in other countries due to restrictions imposed by the Panamanian government. A U.N. official told them they could begin the asylum process in Panama but warned that it was highly unlikely their claims would be accepted.

The U.N.`s International Organization for Migration and the refugee agency did not immediately respond to the AP’s request for comment.

That same day, Filippo Grandi, head of the U.N. refugee agency, cautioned that U.S. government aid cuts would have a detrimental effect on refugee services worldwide.

“We urge member states to fulfil their commitments to displaced people. This is a time for solidarity, not retreat,” Grandi stated.

Deportees, including Omagh, fear that foreign governments and aid organisations are turning their backs on them.

Omagh, who is both an atheist and a member of Afghanistan’s Hazara ethnic minority, believes returning home under Taliban rule would mean certain death. Before attempting to reach the U.S., he had spent years trying to settle in Pakistan, Iran, and other countries, only to be denied visas.

Russian migrant Aleksandr Surgin, also part of the group seeking help at embassies, fled his country after openly criticising the war in Ukraine on social media. He was warned by government officials that he would either be imprisoned or forced to fight in Ukraine.

When asked on Thursday what he planned to do next, he simply replied, “I no longer have any hope.”