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Measles Cases Confirmed at Texas ICE Jail Housing Hundreds of Children

HeadlineFeb 03, 2026

Texas officials have confirmed that two immigrants confined at the ICE jail in Dilley are infected with measles, risking an outbreak at the facility, where about 1,200 people, including over 400 children, are being held. Dr. Lee Rogers of University of Texas Health San Antonio warned in a letter to state health officials that the outbreak at the Dilley ICE jail will become an epidemic unless it’s addressed immediately. He added, “Viruses are not political. They do not care about one’s immigration status. Measles will spread if we allow uncertainty and delay to substitute for reasoned public health action.”

Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security is reportedly using a repurposed $55 billion Navy contract to convert warehouses into jails, while planning sprawling tent cities in remote areas to expand U.S. capacity for mass detention. Pablo Manríquez, the author of the immigration news site Migrant Insider, calls it “a nationwide 'ghost network' of concentration camps.” It comes as a federal judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration’s attempts to limit lawmakers from making unannounced visits to ICE jails. Last month, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem issued a notice requiring lawmakers to provide a warning a week in advance of any visit to an ICE jail. According to DHS, 73,000 people are being held in ICE custody, the most in the agency’s history. 

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