Afghan woman faces deportation through long-dormant court for aiding ISIS plot

Key Points:

• The Trump administration is using the Alien Terrorist Removal Court for the first time since its creation in 1996 to seek the deportation of Nazira Haji Zada, an Afghan woman accused of aiding an ISIS-inspired terror plot in the U.S.
• Haji Zada, from Fort Worth, Texas, is alleged to have supported a family plot to launch a mass casualty attack on Election Day and had her children pledge loyalty to ISIS, according to FBI memos and court filings.
• Her son and son-in-law were convicted in connection with the 2024 Election Day terror plot; her son was sentenced to 15 years and agreed to deportation, while her son-in-law pleaded guilty to conspiring to support ISIS.
• The Alien Terrorist Removal Court, composed of five federal judges appointed by the Supreme Court's chief justice, handles cases involving classified evidence related to noncitizen "alien terrorists" and had never been used until this case.
• Proceedings for Haji Zada’s deportation case will be held at the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington, D.C., with the Justice Department emphasizing that terrorists have no place in the United States.