The U.S. Government will open this coming Sunday, August 17, 2025, what will be the largest detention center for migrants in the country, inside the Fort Bliss military base, located outside of El Paso, Texas.
The facility will begin with a 1,000-person capacity, but is designed to expand in phases to accommodate up to 5,000 detainees, Department of HomelandSecurity (DHS) sources confirmed.
Structure and multi-million dollar contract
The center will consist of buildings and soft-sided facilities.
This is in order to speed up the detention and deportation processes.
The contract for its construction and operation, valued at $1.26 billion, was awarded to Virginia-based Acquisition Logistics LLC.
The Department of the Army has already disbursed more than $230 million to begin work, and the contract is expected to run through September 2027.
Part of a national expansion
The opening at Fort Bliss is part of a broader federal government strategy to expand detention capacity across the country.
The Pentagon has already authorized the use of other military bases to house migrants.
Including Camp Atterbury in Indiana and McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey.
The facility will start with a capacity for 1,000 people
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In addition, certain detainees continue to be sent to the Guantanamo naval base in Cuba.
It is a measure that has generated criticism from human rights organizations.
Human rights concerns
The opening comes against a backdrop of strong allegations of abuse and inadequate conditions in immigration detention centers.
A report released this week by Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff’s office documented more than 500 cases of abuse in DHS custody since January 2025.
Including 41 allegations of physical or sexual abuse, 14 cases of mistreatment of pregnant women and 18 incidents involving minors.
Most of these allegations involve facilities in Texas, increasing scrutiny of the new Fort Bliss facility.
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