The Trump administration is opening a massive new immigration detention camp at Fort Bliss, a military base near El Paso, Texas.
Starting August 17, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will begin moving in 1,000 people who entered the country without legal status. That’s just the beginning — over the next two years, the government plans to lock up as many as 5,000 people there.
“Upon completion, this will be the largest federal detention center in history for this critical mission — the deportation of illegal aliens,” Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson told reporters Thursday.
The facility, named Camp East Montana, is being built under a Department of Defense contract worth up to $1.2 billion. According to Border Report, the plan is to add 250 beds each week until the camp holds 3,000 people — with room to grow.
“ICE personnel will be responsible for the management and operational authority pertaining to Camp East Montana,” the agency said in a statement.
ICE also claims detainees will be allowed to speak with lawyers, use a law library, and have access to recreational areas. But critics are already bracing for problems.
The move comes as Trump faces mounting lawsuits over his hardline immigration crackdown. On the same day the Texas camp was announced, a federal judge temporarily stopped construction of another massive ICE facility — this one in the Florida Everglades.
U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams halted the project, known as “Alligator Alcatraz,” citing “inhumane conditions” and violations of federal law.
Trump is pushing ahead with what he calls the largest deportation effort in U.S. history — no matter the legal or human cost.
