Delaney Hall becomes Markwayne Mullin's first test as DHS head

A private detention center in New Jersey has again become a major flashpoint in the fight over the Trump administration's immigration policies. Why it matters: It's the first major clash under Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin 's leadership. Protesters have been arrested outside the facility while detainees reportedly take part in a hunger strike over claims of inhumane living conditions and inadequate medical care. The 1,000-bed Delaney Hall Facility reopened in Newark, New Jersey, last year. Since then, it's been the scene of high-profile protests , arrests and escapes . Democratic lawmakers and New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill (D) have called for the detention center to be shut down. The latest: Sherrill announced Friday the formation of a protected protest zone outside of the facility. Sherrill also said she'd take "every action available" to facilitate a full inspection of the facility by the New Jersey Department of Health, which she said had its access restricted. A department spokesperson confirmed to Axios that inspectors were only allowed to conduct a food service inspection. The other side: Mullin has argued the backlash has "nothing to do with the conditions at the facility," which DHS says include three meals a day, clean water, clothing and other resources. DHS has contended there is no hunger strike. Mullin said during a Wednesday meeting of Trump's Cabinet that the "handful of individuals" refused to eat because they wanted their "ethnic right food." Mullin added, "They can go back to their country and get whatever food they want." DHS did not respond to Axios' request for additional comment. State of play: But Nedia Morsy, the director of Make the Road New Jersey, tells Axios that the hunger strike is a coordinated effort among 300 detained community members seeking release. "ICE lies and manipulates and threatens and continues to feel that they have the permission to do so because ......

Original source: Axios