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Pope Francis criticizes separation of immigrant children from their parents on US border

Pope Francis joined in criticism of President Donald Trump’s "zero tolerance” policy that has separated children from their parents who were found illegally entering the United States.

The pontiff said he supported the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' condemnation of the separations as against Catholic values. “It’s not easy, but populism is not the solution,” Francis said in an exclusive interview with Reuters published Wednesday.

“I am on the side of the bishops’ conference … Let it be clear that in these things, I respect (the position of) the bishops conference,” Frances said in the interview.

The U.S. policy, announced in April, requires criminal charges for adults caught crossing the border without using a legal port of entry. Through the end of May, the policy has separated almost 2,000 children from the adults they were traveling with, the Department of Homeland Security has acknowledged.

The publication of the pope’s comments Wednesday came on World Refugee Day and as #WorldRefugeeDay trended on social media. “A person's dignity does not depend on them being a citizen, a migrant, or a refugee. Saving the life of someone fleeing war and poverty is an act of humanity. #WithRefugees @M_RSection,” Francis tweeted Wednesday.

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops migration committee chairman Bishop Joe S. Vásquez has condemned the zero tolerance policy. "Forcibly separating children from their mothers and fathers is ineffective to the goals of deterrence and safety and contrary to our Catholic values," he said.

"Our government has the discretion in our laws to ensure that young children are not separated from their parents and exposed to irreparable harm and trauma," Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston, told the Spring General Assembly in Fort Lauderdale in Florida.

When asked about the issue in parliament Wednesday, British Prime Minister Theresa May also condemned the separations, but said Trump’s visit to her country July 13 would go ahead as planned.

Scottish lawmaker Ian Blackford referred to the “deeply distressing audio and images” of children crying and being held in cages, and asked: “Is the prime minister still intending to roll out the red carpet for Donald Trump?”

“On the very important issue that he’s raised, of what we have seen in the United States, the pictures of children being held in what appear to be cages are deeply disturbing. This is wrong. This is not something we agree with. This is not the United Kingdom’s approach,” May replied, adding she would raise the issue with Trump during his visit.

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U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein said earlier this week that it is "unconscionable" that any country would seek to deter parents from migrating "by inflicting such abuse on children."

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has defended the policy. "We do not want to separate children from their parents," he told the National Sheriffs' Association. "We do not want adults to bring children into this country unlawfully, placing them at risk. But we do have a policy of prosecuting adults who flout our laws to come here illegally instead of waiting their turn or claiming asylum at any port of entry."