In a room in the luxurious Decápolis hotel in Panama City, two girls hold a piece of paper with written messages on the window. "Please help us," it wrote.

The hotel offers customers sea views and features two exclusive restaurants, a swimming pool, a spa and private transportation. The Panama government said on Tuesday it has become a "temporary guardianship" center for 299 undocumented immigrants.

Some immigrants raised their arms and crossed them on their wrists, indicating that they were deprived of their freedom. Others hung 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 illegally entered the United States. Those hotels in Panama City took three flights last week after President José Raúl Mulino agreed that Panama would become a "bridge" country for the expelled people.

However, among the 299 undocumented immigrants - from India, China, Uzbekistan, Iran, Vietnam, Turkey, Nepal, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka - only 171 people agreed to return to their country of origin.

Now, the rest face an uncertain future, and Panamanian authorities control what will happen next.

According to the government, the group will be moved to a camp in the province of Rien, which has temporarily housed immigrants who have crossed the jungle to the United States.

On a normal day, visitors can easily access the DeApolis Hotel, but now, armed personnel from the Panama National Aviation Services Department are armed with weight, enforcing strict safety measures inside and outside the building.

From the street, you can see the laundry hanging from the window. One of them is a yellow Los Angeles Lakers basketball jersey, number 24, worn by legendary player Kobe Bryant.

In another window, a group of adults and three children raise their arms with their thumbs on their palms - an international symbol of those in need. "Help Us" is written in red letters on glass.

The child covered in the face of the two children posted the paper onto a glass with the words: "Please save the Afghan girl."

An Iranian woman who has lived in Panama for many years told the BBC she was in contact with an immigrant in the hotel. She said they were "feared" about the possibility of returning to Iran.

The woman, who was asked not to be named, said she went to the hotel to help her as a Borsey translator, but was told they already had one.

However, she added that people inside the hotel said it was not true.

The Iranian woman said that the hidden cell phones were used because contact with those outside the DeCápolis was reportedly not allowed, so the immigrant told her that there were several children in the hotel and they were turned down by lawyers and they were not allowed to leave the room or even eat.

The woman said security measures taken were tightened after first reported stories of deportees held in a hotel on Tuesday and immigrants visited the internet.

The BBC contacted the DeCápolis Hotel and the Panamanian government to inquire about the condition inside the building, but received no response.

However, Panama's Public Safety Minister Frankábrego said immigration was not allowed to leave the hotel because his government must ensure the safety and peace of the Panamanians.

A video posted on social media over the weekend showed one of the immigrants in Porsey described how they were detained after crossing the border to the U.S. border and told them they would be taken to Texas, but eventually they were Bring to Panama.

The woman in the video said her life would be at risk if she could return to Iran due to government retaliation.

Her intention, she said, was to demand political asylum.

Analysts say it's hard to get without a lawyer - even when the Panama government announced that it wouldn't be offered such access to people who were deported.

Minister Ábrego said on Tuesday that immigrants will remain in Panama for the time being under the protection of the country's authorities.

"Our agreement with the U.S. government is that they are here and will continue to be temporarily kept to protect them," he said.

He also warned that immigrants who do not want to return to their country of origin must choose a third country.

He said that in this case, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will be responsible for their repatriation.

An IOM spokesman told the BBC that the organization is responsible for providing "basic support" to those expelled from the United States.

“We are working with local officials to help those affected, support voluntary return of those who request it and identify safe alternatives for others,” he said.

“Although we are not directly involved in the movement to detain or restrict people, we are committed to ensuring that all immigrants are treated with dignity and in accordance with international standards,” he said.

Ábrego also said the immigrants were placed in the Decápolis hotel because it had the ability to receive them.

Another senior official said, “No more immigrants are expected to arrive” because we no longer agree to this type of flight with the United States.

Panama agreed to be a "bridge" country for deportation after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to the country, as tensions threaten Trump to "restore" sovereignty on the Panama Canal.

Muzaffar Chishti, a senior researcher at the Institute for Immigration Policy, said many of the deported people come from countries where the state does not accept the return of nationals who have been deported from the United States.

"This means constant diplomatic negotiations with these governments," he told the BBC.

“By sending them to Panama, the United States is not in the picture,” he added. “It is a headache for Panama to take charge of those negotiations and see how these countries agree to accept them again.”

This week, deported aircraft from the United States is expected to arrive in Costa Rica, another Central American country agreed with Washington, becoming a "bridge" country for deportation.

Other reports by BBC Persian Sheida Hooshmandi