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US releases immigrant families, won’t say how many

FILE - This June 18, 2014 file-pool photo shows U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers waiting for new arrivals in the intake area where hundreds of mostly Central American immigrant children are being processed and held at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Nogales Placement Center in Nogales, Ariz. The Obama administration has released into the U.S. an untold number of immigrant families caught traveling illegally from Central America in recent months _ and although the government knows how many it’s released, it won’t say publicly. Senior U.S. officials directly familiar with the issue, including at the Homeland Security Department and White House, have so far dodged the answer on at least seven occasions over two weeks, alternately saying that they did not know the figure or didn’t have it immediately at hand. “We will get back to you,” the Homeland Security deputy secretary said Friday. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File-Pool) FILE - This June 18, 2014 file-pool photo shows U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers waiting for new arrivals in the intake area where hundreds of mostly Central American immigrant children are being processed and held at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Nogales Placement Center in Nogales, Ariz. The Obama administration has released into the U.S. an untold number of immigrant families caught traveling illegally from Central America in recent months _ and although the government knows how many it’s released, it won’t say publicly. Senior U.S. officials directly familiar with the issue, including at the Homeland Security Department and White House, have so far dodged the answer on at least seven occasions over two weeks, alternately saying that they did not know the figure or didn’t have it immediately at hand. “We will get back to you,” the Homeland Security deputy secretary said Friday. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File-Pool)

By Associated Press June 23, 2014 1 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Obama administration has released into the U.S. an untold number of immigrant families caught traveling illegally from Central America in recent months. Although the government knows how many it’s released, it won’t say publicly.

Senior U.S. officials directly familiar with the issue, including at the Homeland Security Department and White House, have so far dodged the answer on at least seven occasions over two weeks. They have alternately said they did not know the figure or didn’t have it immediately at hand.

The figure is widely believed to exceed 40,000 since October. It’s believed to be slightly below the roughly 52,000 children caught traveling illegally from Central America over the same period, an extraordinary increase since last year that is driving a humanitarian crisis at the border.