in the hell of the Darien Gap jungle with migrants trying to reach the United States

It’s anything but a trip, mdespite the spectacular scenery. In the mountainous jungles located between Colombia and Panama, France 2 followed migrants trying to reach the United States from South America. For days, these people from Venezuela, Haiti or Africa face the dangers on foot to cross the “Darién Gap”, or “Darién hole”, 100 km of extremely dangerous jungle where many die. “If we break a leg, if we have a fracture, it’s over. There will be no help, we will stay at Darien. It’s do or die. But for us, the worst thing would be to stay where we come from”, says one of them, Manuel. He flees Ecuador and the gang that wanted to recruit him: “They attacked my house and shot my wife who was pregnant. I was not there”he says at the microphone of France 2.

To make this grueling journey, they paid 350 dollars per person to a cartel of Colombian drug traffickers. Once past this dense jungle, they will still have several countries to cross, over 3,000 km, before crossing the United States border: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico. “I dream of going for a ride, then I want to see the beach”testifies Précieuse, 8 years old, from the Congo.