Gil Kerlikowske, former commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Global Resilience Institute, spoke with PBS NewsHour about migrant families being separated at the southern U.S. border. According to the Department of Homeland Security, 2,342 children have been separated from their parents since early May, as part of a new immigration strategy.

“It’s heartbreaking not only to tear these children away from their mothers and fathers but I am very concerned about the effect that it would have on these border patrol agents,” Kerlikowske told PBS NewsHour’s John Yang.

To watch the full clip, click here or use the player below. To read the transcript, click here.

The policy was announced April 6 and went into effect in May, AP reports.