Justice Department secures deportation of Afghan woman through secretive ‘Alien Terrorist’ court, tell me about this news in (https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/11/politics/justice-department-deportation-isis-afganistan-secretive-terrorist-court)
11-09-2026
The report covers the first-ever case handled by the Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC), an obscure, secretive federal court created by Congress in 1996 that had remained dormant for three decades. Department of JusticeKey Details of the Story
- The Subject: Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan national living in Fort Worth, Texas. Court records noted she does not speak, read, or write English. Department of Justice+ 1
- The Allegations: The Justice Department characterized her as an Islamic State (ISIS) supporter who helped indoctrinate her family and aided in preparations for a foiled ISIS-inspired mass casualty plot targeting the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Her son (Abdullah Haji Zada) and son-in-law (Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi) had already been prosecuted and convicted in Oklahoma for their roles in the conspiracy. While she was never criminally charged, federal authorities alleged she helped liquidate family assets and arranged one-way travel to Afghanistan before the planned attack. Local News 8+ 2
- The “Alien Terrorist” Court: Established under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, the ATRC consists of five federal district judges appointed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. It is designed to quickly deport non-citizens classified by the government as terrorists and permits the use of classified evidence that targets cannot fully challenge or review under standard criminal due process protections. Previous administrations avoided testing the court due to long-standing constitutional concerns. The Independent+ 2
- The Outcome: In July 2026, the Justice Department activated the court for the first time by filing an application to remove Haji Zada. Instead of engaging in a drawn-out legal fight over the constitutional authority and procedures of the secretive court, Haji Zada agreed to waive her rights to challenge her detention and conceded to deportation. Her attorneys stressed that her consent to removal should not be viewed as an endorsement of the court’s legitimacy. The Independent+ 1