Afghan National Becomes First Offender Deported Under Alien Terrorist Removal Court

The United States Alien Terrorist Removal Court is now officially in use for the first time, the Justice Department announced on Friday.

Afghan national Nazira Haji Zada was deported from the U.S. over her role in a mass shooting plot on the 2024 Election Day, which was “ISIS-inspired.”

Nazira Haji Zada, an Afghan national who was living in Texas, is now permanently inadmissible to the United States after @TheJusticeDept secured her removal in the first-ever case brought before the Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC) because she supported her son and…

— Attorney General Todd Blanche (@AGToddBlanche) September 11, 2026

The DOJ said that her son and son-in-law have also been convicted in the plot, and she will never be able to return to the country. Her son and son-in-law were arrested last October when they were caught in an FBI sting while trying to buy weapons for the plot, “selling off their property” as well as trying to “raise funds” for the terror plot. In addition, plane tickets back to Afghanistan were bought for Zada and “other minor children” before the plot was set to take place. 

“This landmark case, resulting in the prompt removal of this alien terrorist to her country of origin, is a win for national security and the rule of law,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement. “Those who support and condone terrorism should not be living in the United States, and this first-ever case before the ATRC shows how the Department will use every tool at its disposal to protect our country.”

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg explained that “Zada supported her sons’ terrorist plot to attack the United States while she enjoyed the privilege of residing here as a resident alien.”

“She abused our Nation’s hospitality and represented a clear threat to our national security. The United States is a safer place now that her sons are in custody and she has been deported,” Eisenberg added.

The DOJ noted in a press release that although the court was legally created in 1996, it has never actually been used until now.

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