Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without
trial. Collins English dictionary adds that the term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in
wartime or of
terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply mean
imprisonment, it tends to refer to preventive confinement, rather than confinement
after having been convicted of some crime. Use of these terms is subject to debate and political sensitivities.