US Deports 47-Year-Old Afghan Woman in First Alien Terrorist Removal Court Case
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 11
US Deports 47-Year-Old Afghan Woman in First Alien Terrorist Removal Court Case
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 11
Summary
Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan woman arrested in Texas in July, was deported after the first successful use of the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, the Justice Department said Friday.
Prosecutors alleged she supported Islamic State and was linked to a foiled 2024 Election Day mass-shooting plot inspired by ISIS, bringing her before the little-used Washington court.
Court papers show Zada first challenged the tribunal as unconstitutional because it relies heavily on classified evidence, but the Justice Department said she later conceded she was an "alien terrorist" and waived that challenge.
The case gives the Trump administration a new deportation tool as it presses a broader crackdown that has already drawn legal challenges over aggressive immigration tactics.