U.S. Border Patrol agents take into custody a father and son from Honduras near the U.S.-Mexico border on June 12, 2018 near Mission, Texas.

A new Trump administration policy to prosecute everyone who crosses into the United States illegally has resulted in thousands of children being separated from their families.

The so-called zero tolerance policy has been criticized by religious groups and medical organizations, with experts saying children could face long-lasting trauma.

President Donald Trump has blamed Democrats for the policy of separating families, with no grounds for such a claim, while others in his administration, including White House chief of staff John Kelly, have called the policy a strong deterrent against illegal immigration.