For thirty years, a federal court created to remove foreign nationals deemed terrorist threats sat unused — a legal instrument waiting for a moment its architects hoped would never come. That moment arrived this week in Washington, when the Trump administration filed the first-ever petition before the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, naming Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan woman from Fort Worth, Texas, whose son and son-in-law were convicted in connection with a planned Election Day massacre in 2024. The awakening of this dormant tribunal raises questions that reach beyond one family's all
U.S. Activates 30-Year-Dormant Terror Court to Deport Afghan Woman in ISIS Plot Case
Nazira Haji Zada faces deportation; her son Abdullah was sentenced to 15 years in prison and her son-in-law Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi pleaded guilty to material support for ISIS.
The matriarch of an ISIS-sympathising family aiding in a plot
Mark
So this court has been sitting unused for thirty years—why create it in the first place if nobody was going to use it?
Mimi
Congress built it in 1996 as a specialized tool for terrorism cases, but the bar for using it appears to have been set very high. It required the Justice Department to make the case that someone qualified as an "alien terrorist," and apparently that threshold wasn't met until now.
Luke
Or it wasn't pursued. We should be careful about the word "never." The court wasn't used, but that could mean the cases didn't exist, or it could mean previous administrations chose different legal paths. The filing doesn't explain why this administration decided now was the moment.
Mark
What makes Nazira Haji Zada the first person they're using it for? What's different about her case?
Mimi
She's accused of actively supporting her family's plot—not just knowing about it, but encouraging it. The FBI memo says she had her children pledge loyalty to ISIS. Her son got 15 years, her son-in-law ordered rifles and bought one-way tickets. She's positioned as the person who bound them together ideologically.
Luke
But here's the thing—we have the FBI's characterization of what she did, and we have court filings. We don't have her side yet. The hearing is Thursday. We don't know what evidence will actually be presented or what she'll say in her defense.
Mark
Does she have a right to see the evidence against her, or does this court operate differently?
Mimi
The court can use classified evidence, which is one reason it was designed this way. That's also why it's controversial—the defendant's ability to challenge evidence is potentially limited.
Luke
And that's the real story underneath this one. The court's existence and its first use raise questions about due process that the current filing doesn't address. We know what the government alleges. We don't yet know how the court will handle the defendant's rights.
Mark
What happens if she loses?
Mimi
She's deported to Afghanistan. Her son stays in prison here for 15 years. The family is separated across continents.
Luke
Assuming she loses. The hearing hasn't happened yet.
Il Polso
- A court established in 1996 and never once convened has suddenly been activated, marking a sharp escalation in how the administration intends to pursue terrorism-related deportations.
- Nazira Haji Zada was arrested this week, accused by the FBI of encouraging her children to pledge loyalty to ISIS and actively supporting a plot designed to kill American voters on Election Day 2024.
- Her son is already serving 15 years in prison and her son-in-law pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to ISIS — he had ordered rifles, liquidated family assets, and bought one-way tickets for his wife and child to leave the country.
- The Justice Department filed its removal petition on July 29, 2026, framing the case as proof that a specialized, classified-evidence tribunal can and will be used against those it designates alien terrorists.
- Legal observers and civil liberties advocates are watching closely, as the court's structure — five judges appointed by the Chief Justice, with potential use of classified evidence — operates well outside the norms of standard immigration proceedings.
For thirty years, a federal court created to remove foreign nationals deemed terrorist threats sat unused — a legal instrument waiting for a moment its architects hoped would never come. That moment arrived this week in Washington, when the Trump administration filed the first-ever petition before the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, naming Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan woman from Fort Worth, Texas, whose son and son-in-law were convicted in connection with a planned Election Day massacre in 2024. The awakening of this dormant tribunal raises questions that reach beyond one family's alleged crimes: about the boundaries of national security law, the architecture of justice built for emergencies, and what it means when governments reach for tools long left on the shelf.
A federal courthouse in Washington opened this week for a proceeding three decades in the making. The Alien Terrorist Removal Court — established by Congress in 1996 and never once convened — held its first hearing on July 30, 2026, in the case of Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan woman living in Fort Worth, Texas.
The allegations against her are grave. An FBI memo dated July 15 describes Zada as an ISIS supporter who had her children swear loyalty to the terrorist group and who actively aided a conspiracy developed by two of her closest relatives. Her son, Abdullah Haji Zada, was sentenced last November to 15 years in prison for his role in a plot timed to coincide with Election Day 2024. Her son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi — once a security guard at a U.S. military installation in Afghanistan — pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to ISIS. Prosecutors say he ordered AK-47 rifles, liquidated his family's savings, and arranged one-way flights for his wife and child back to Afghanistan as he prepared to act.
The Justice Department filed its removal petition on July 29, the first application ever submitted to the court in its thirty-year existence. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche called Zada the matriarch of an ISIS-sympathizing family and declared that the filing proved terrorists have no place in the United States.
The court itself is an unusual instrument — composed of five federal judges drawn from districts across the country and appointed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, it operates under a framework that permits the use of classified evidence and sits apart from the standard immigration system. Its activation now raises a larger question: whether this long-dormant mechanism will become a routine feature of the administration's enforcement strategy, or whether Nazira Haji Zada's case will remain the rare, exceptional moment that finally justified opening the door.
A federal court that has sat empty for three decades opened its doors this week for the first time, activated to pursue the deportation of an Afghan woman accused of supporting her family's plot to carry out a mass casualty attack on American voters. Nazira Haji Zada, 47, of Fort Worth, Texas, was arrested earlier this week and now faces proceedings before the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, a specialized tribunal established by Congress in 1996 but never before used. A hearing was scheduled for Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Washington, DC.
The case centers on allegations that Zada supported an Islamic State-inspired conspiracy involving her son and son-in-law, both Afghan men who were convicted in connection with a planned attack timed for Election Day 2024. According to an FBI memo dated July 15, Zada is described as an Islamic State supporter who had her children pledge their loyalty to the terrorist group. The memo states she actively supported the plot her relatives were developing.
Zada's son, Abdullah Haji Zada, was sentenced to 15 years in prison last November for his role in the scheme. Court records indicate he has agreed to be removed from the United States after his release. Her son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, previously worked as a security guard at an American military installation in Afghanistan. He pleaded guilty to conspiring and attempting to provide material support to ISIS. Prosecutors documented that Tawhedi took concrete steps to advance his attack plans: he ordered AK-47 rifles, liquidated his family's assets, and purchased one-way airline tickets for his wife and child to return to Afghanistan.
The Alien Terrorist Removal Court operates under a specific legal framework designed to handle deportation cases involving individuals the Justice Department designates as "alien terrorists." The court is composed of five federal judges appointed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, drawn from various districts across the country. All proceedings currently take place at the Federal Courthouse in Washington. The Justice Department filed its petition seeking Zada's removal on July 29, 2026, marking the first application ever submitted to the court in its 30-year existence.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche framed the case as a test of the government's authority to remove foreign nationals deemed threats to national security. "Congress created the Alien Terrorist Removal Court three decades ago to remove from the United States alien terrorists who never should have been here in the first place," Blanche said in a statement. He characterized Zada as "the matriarch of an ISIS-sympathising family aiding in a plot to launch a mass casualty attack on American voters on Election Day," and stated that the Justice Department's application demonstrates that "terrorists have no place in the United States of America."
The activation of this dormant court signals a shift in how the Trump administration intends to handle terrorism-related deportation cases. The specialized tribunal allows the government to conduct removal proceedings under a distinct legal framework separate from standard immigration courts, with classified evidence potentially playing a role in the proceedings. The case of Nazira Haji Zada will test whether this three-decade-old mechanism becomes a regular tool for the administration's immigration enforcement strategy, or whether it remains an exceptional recourse reserved for the most serious allegations.
Citazioni salienti
Congress created the Alien Terrorist Removal Court three decades ago to remove from the United States alien terrorists who never should have been here in the first place.— Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche
The allegations in this case show the matriarch of an ISIS-sympathising family aiding in a plot to launch a mass casualty attack on American voters on Election Day.— Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche
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