The Department of Homeland Security plans to set up detention facilities on two U.S. military bases to temporarily house migrants set for deportation. This week, the Department of Defense authorized the use of those installations.
A July 15 letter from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth confirmed plans to let the Department of Homeland Security use property at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey and Camp Atterbury in Indiana. The decision came after a request by Homeland Security.
A defense official told Task & Purpose that the timeline for the new facilities hasn’t been made clear and depends on coordinating with DHS.
The July 15 letter to Rep. Herb Conaway (D-N.J.) confirms plans to house detained migrants on the two bases. According to the defense official, the Department of Homeland Security will establish temporary soft-sided holding facilities on the grounds of bases, rather than use existing structures.
The move will “not negatively affect military training, operations, readiness, or other military requirements, including National Guard and Reserve readiness,” Hegseth wrote.
Hegseth’s letter did not detail what parts of the bases these camps would be set up on, or provide any additional details.
Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, located southeast of Trenton, is home to multiple units from the National Guard, and reserves from the Army, Navy and Marine Corps. Camp Atterbury serves as a training facility for the National Guard. The two bases recently housed several thousand Afghan refugees in the aftermath of the U.S. evacuation from Afghanistan in 2021, as part of Operation Allies Welcome.
Although the Department of Homeland Security has been carrying out immigration raids and detentions, it has relied on the Department of Defense for several logistical services. That includes the use of military planes and airfields for deportation flights out of the United States.
Top Stories This Week
Several dozen Florida National Guard troops are protecting a detention facility in the Florida Everglades. Additionally, thousands of National Guard troops from California were placed under federal control last month in order to protect federal agents, including members of the Department of Homeland Security, as they carried out immigration-related operations.
Guardsmen have accompanied Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol personnel on small raids in Southern California and larger operations, including shows of presence in central Los Angeles and missions to farms in rural parts of the area. Half of those Guardsmen were released from federal authority this week after more than a month.
