detention camp

noun

1. a compound where prisoners are detained temporarily, as pending determination of their legal status under immigration laws.

Word History and Origins

Origin of detention camp¹

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

Escape attempts from the largest detention camp in northeast Syria, Al Hol, have increased this year.

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The next seven years were marked by the forced disappearance of an estimated 20,000-30,000 people, many of whom were kidnapped and taken to clandestine detention camps to be tortured and killed.

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Thousands still sit in detention camps in the area.

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The detention camp contract at Fort Bliss, which could eventually hold 5,000 people, was awarded to a consortium of firms led by a company on the military contracting list for over $1 billion.

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They’re supposed to expedite the deportation of the tens of thousands of people currently in detention camps and go through millions of backlogged cases even though few of them have experience with immigration law.

Read more on Los Angeles Times