Under U.S. law young migrants and asylum seekers would normally be allowed to live with relatives while their cases wind through immigration courts. Instead the Trump administration is quickly expelling them under an emergency declaration citing the coronavirus pandemic, with 600 minors expelled in April 2020 alone.

Michelle Brané, director of migrant rights and justice at the Women’s Refugee Commission, said the virus is an excuse for expelling children, and the Trump administration could admit them and still counter its spread through measures like temperature checks and quarantines.

This Associated Press story was featured on hundreds of news websites, including El Nuevo Dia.