Best I can tell from the article, it is a joint US / UK military base that houses terrorism suspects and is “home” to a large group of Sri Lankan Tamils whose housing is classified as “migrant costs” but I think these people are there for suspected “terrorism” against Sri Lanka. The Sri Lanka government oppresses and terrorizes its own people (maybe just the Tamils? IDK) and the people who fight back to try to ensure safety for everyone are considered terrorists. The music artist M.I.A. is Tamil from Sri Lanka, her uncle was labeled a terrorist for fighting against the oppressive government. There’s a great documentary about M.I.A. that I recommend, it’s a fun watch.

I hate the indefinite “they” to refer to the powerful. They could mean anyone from a coalition of governments to the international brotherhood of construction workers to Eli down the street.