The Trump administration separated thousands more children from their families at the border than has been previously acknowledged, a federal watchdog said Thursday.
The exact number, however, is still unknown, according to a report by the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General, which provides oversight of the department.
Pursuant to a federal court order issued last year, the department identified 2,737 children separated from their parents.
But that number did not include thousands more whom officials say may have been separated from their families starting in 2017, according to the new report.
The children were not included in the earlier count because the court order focused on identifying children who were still in the care of the Health and Human Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement at the time that it was issued.
