U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet condemned the dire conditions in which jailed migrants are being held in the U.S., and the ongoing separation of children from their families. In a statement released Monday, she warned that the detention of migrant children “may constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment that is prohibited by international law.” This is U.N. human rights spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani.

Ravina Shamdasani: “What we appear to be seeing in the U.S. are policies that are based on detection, detention and expeditious deportation of migrants, without much regard for their human rights. This appears to be taken on as a policy of deterrence; however, this is completely a breach of the state’s human rights obligations.”