Sessions invokes Bible to defend splitting families

JEFF SESSIONS, the US attorney general, defended separating children from their parents at the Mexican border by invoking a biblical verse once used to argue in favour of slavery.

Nearly 2,000 minors were separated from their parents or adult guardians who illegally crossed into the United States in a six-week period between April and May, officials said last night.

It was part of a “zero tolerance” policy Mr Sessions announced last month to detain and prosecute all illegal immigrants.

Children are being held separately from their parents, with hundreds being held in a former Walmart store in Texas that has been converted into a detention facility.

Donald Trump, the US president, blamed Democrats for the situation, saying he was enforcing laws that were already in existence.

In an impromptu interview with Fox News on the White House lawn, Mr Trump said: “He [Mr Sessions] is following laws that were forced upon us by the Democrats. I want the laws to be beautifully humane but strong. I don’t want bad people coming in.”

However, the president said he would not sign a “moderate” immigration bill being worked on by Republicans in Congress. He added: “I need a bill that gives tremendous security.”

Mr Sessions said criticisms of his policy were not “fair or logical”.

The attorney general added: “I would cite you to the Apostle Paul and his clear and wise command in Romans 13, to obey the laws of the government because God has ordained them for the purpose of order. Orderly and lawful processes are good in themselves and protect the weak and lawful.”

Critics seized on the history of the same verse being used by defenders of slavery in the US South, Nazi rule in Germany and apartheid in South Africa. John Fea, an American history professor at Messiah College, Pennsylvania, said: “This is the same argument that Southern slaveholders and the advocates of a Southern way of life made.”

Franklin Graham, son of the late Billy Graham and a fervent supporter of Mr Trump, condemned the policy, calling it “disgraceful”.

Bubble bath A baby humpback whale plays in the foam and spray created by its mother. The picture was taken on the island of Moorea, in French Polynesia, by Renée Capozzola, a biology teacher. This is whale season on the islands, as humpbacks come to...