Central American Route
Hundreds of thousands of people cross Central America every year hoping to enter the United States. The majority are fleeing extreme violence and poverty in the Northern Triangle, made up of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, but many also come from Colombia and other countries in South America. Migrants cross Mexico’s vast territory perched on the wagons of the cargo train network known as La Bestia.
Three main routes cross Mexico: one along the west to Tijuana which culminates in the wall at the US border; the second goes through the center of the country, via the Sonora desert, and the third – the shortest and most dangerous – goes through territory controlled by organized criminal groups to the Rio Bravo (known in the US as the Rio Grande).
The Central American migrant trafficking routes have fallen into the hands of narcotraffickers, who force the migrants to pay for protection.
A group of migrants cross the Turquesa River in the Darien jungle in Panama on September 14, 2023. After many days traveling on foot through the dangerous jungle that serves as a border with Colombia, the migrants arrive at the indigenous village of Bajo Chiquito. Panamanian authorities said a record 520,000 people crossed through the Darien in 2023. EPA - EFE / BIENVENIDO VELASCO
Members of a migrant caravan that departed from El Salvador arrive in the municipality of Matias Romero, in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, November 9, 2018. EPA - EFE / LUIS VILLALOBOS
A young Central American member of a migrant caravan finds room in the underbody of a crowded truck to continue on route to the United States near the town of Santiago Niltepec, in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, Nov. 12, 2021. EPA - EFE / DANIEL RICARDEZ
A group of migrants aboard cargo trains of the “La Bestia” network transit near the northern Mexican town of Ciudad Juarez, near the border with the United States, October 3, 2023. The migrants spend days on the train, using tents to protect themselves from inclement weather. EPA - EFE / LUIS TORRES
A group of migrants travel on freight cars of the Mexican railway network known as “The Beast”, near Ciudad Juarez, northern Mexico, on September 16, 2023. The migrants spend days on the train, sometimes assisted with food and water by NGOs that help them along the way. The danger of being assaulted by armed groups or corrupt police or of falling off while sleeping is ever-present. EPA - EFE / LUIS TORRES
A group of migrants prepares to cross the Rio Grande River, which forms the border between Mexico and the United States, from the Mexican town of Piedras Negras, on September 22, 2023. EPA - EFE / MIGUEL SIERRA
A girl crosses the Rio Grande River, which forms the border between Mexico and the United States, from the Mexican town of Ciudad Juarez on March 14, 2024. The strength and level of the river increased two days earlier due to a treaty between Mexico and the United States that obliges the latter to cede water from the river to irrigate crops in the Juarez Valley, making the crossing much more dangerous for migrants. EPA-EFE / LUIS TORRES
A group of migrants crosses through a crack in the border fence between Mexico and the United States at Lukeville, in the state of Arizona, on December 12, 2023, after crossing the Sonora desert. In December 2023 alone, more than 220,000 people arrived, according to the U.S Border Patrol. EPA / ALLISON DINNER
A woman and her children are transported by van by the U.S. Border Patrol in Jacumba, California, June 4, 2024, after crossing the border from Mexico. On that day, President Joe Biden signed an executive order tightening restrictions on migrants seeking asylum at the border. EPA / ALLISON DINNER