CNN: Parents of 71 Separated Children Cannot Be Located

The government has not been able to find the parents of 71 illegal immigrant children who were likely separated from their families at the U.S. border with Mexico, CNN reported.

"There are some children who we believe are separated for whom we have not yet identified the parent," Jonathan White, Health and Human Services assistant secretary for preparedness and response, told U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw during a hearing Monday, CNN reported.

According to CNN, White told Sabraw that of 2,551 children in federal custody who are believed to separated from their families, officials have confirmed matches with 2,480 parents.

He also reported 1,609 parents are in government custody, which CNN reported might suggest hundreds of parents have either been deported or released already, or might be in federal or state criminal custody.

Sabraw ordered a temporary halt to deportations of immigrant families reunited after being separated at the border, as the Trump administration races to meet its July 26 deadline for reuniting children with their parents.

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