In a bid to deter illegal immigration, the administration of US President Donald Trump is planning to separate women and children sneaking together into the country, officials say.
The Department of Homeland Security has been considering the proposal for some time now, Press TV reports citing Reuters.
Discouraging mothers from migrating to the US was one of the main objectives authorities hope to achieve by undertaking the measure, the report said.
The new plan would also allow the government to keep parents in detention as they contest deportation or make their cases in asylum courts.
Children, meanwhile, would be put into protective custody by the Department of Health and Human Services in what the officials described as the “least restrictive setting” until their US relatives or state-sponsored guardians take them into care.
