Migrant detention center to be established at a military base in Texas, under the supervision of US authorities.
The Largest Migrant Detention Center in the U.S. Opens at Fort Bliss, Texas
The United States is building its largest ever migrant detention facility, named Camp East Montana, at Fort Bliss, Texas. The facility, initially opening with a capacity of about 1,000 beds, is set to expand to accommodate 5,000 migrants, making it the country's biggest federal detention center for migrants.
The expansion plans for Camp East Montana involve increasing its capacity "in the weeks and months ahead" to accommodate increased migrant detentions. The construction and operation of the facility are funded by the Department of Defense, even though it is for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees.
The operational responsibility for the detained migrants at Camp East Montana falls under the Department of Homeland Security, specifically ICE. The center will house single adults who are undergoing legal proceedings for removal or have final deportation orders. It serves both as a detention and processing center to streamline deportations.
Camp East Montana will include tent-like temporary housing with access to medical treatment, legal representation, visitation, recreation, and balanced meals as per ICE detention standards. The center aligns with increased immigration enforcement efforts under the current administration, which has prioritized detaining and deporting undocumented migrants.
In July, Congress approved $45 billion for building new immigration detention centers. The existing ICE detention population averaged around 57,800 adults nationwide as of July 2025, with record numbers of migrants being detained by ICE in recent weeks.
It is worth noting that some migrants have been deported using military aircraft, but this has reportedly been stopped on cost grounds. The Pentagon initially balked at building facilities to house detained migrants during Trump's first term, but in Trump's second term, the activation of the military for migrant facilities is meeting with more success. Thousands of active-duty troops have been sent to the US-Mexico border during Trump's second term.
The Guantanamo Bay detention camp was ordered by Trump to prepare a 30,000-person "migrant facility," though it has not held anywhere close to that number of people. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth approved the use of two military bases - in New Jersey and Indiana - to house migrants before their deportation in July.
In summary, Fort Bliss's Camp East Montana is the largest planned migrant detention center in the U.S., financed by the Defense Department but operated by DHS/ICE, designed to rapidly scale migrant detention capacity in response to rising enforcement.
- News about the construction of America's largest migrant detention center, Camp East Montana at Fort Bliss, Texas, is making headlines, with the facility aiming to house up to 5,000 migrants.
- Amidst political debates and General-News on migration, the increase in migrant detentions has led to the expansion of Camp East Montana, funded by the Department of Defense.
- The ongoing War-and-Conflicts and Politics in nations causing migration have resulted in record numbers of migrants being detained by ICE, as highlighted by the operations at Camp East Montana in Texas.
