The disgraced former US congressman, Anthony Weiner, and his wife, Huma Abedin, are to separate.

Mrs Abedin, a long-time aide of Hillary Clinton, made the announcement on Monday after new reports emerged suggesting that her husband, the former Democrat politician, had once again sent sexually inappropriate photos.

Mr Weiner resigned from Congress in 2011 after similar explicit messages came to light. His 2013 New York City mayoral bid foundered on a similar scandal.

This weekend, reports in the US press alleged that in July 2015, Mr Weiner texted a woman a sexually suggestive picture of himself with his sleeping four-year-old next to him. The story, published in the New York Post, ran under the headline: “Daddy sexts while taking care of tot”.

Ms Abedin said she was “furious and sickened” by the picture, which she claims not have known about until this weekend. She said in a statement: “After long and painful consideration and work on my marriage, I have made the decision to separate from my husband.”

Mr Weiner deleted his Twitter account after the latest report surfaced and it has been reported that news outlets NY1 and The New York Daily News decided to cut ties with him this week.