US Deports 47-Year-Old Afghan Resident in First Alien Terrorist Court Case
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Sep 12
US Deports 47-Year-Old Afghan Resident in First Alien Terrorist Court Case
3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Sep 12
Summary
Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan lawful permanent resident in Texas, was deported after agreeing to removal and waiving any appeal in the first-ever Alien Terrorist Removal Court case.
The Justice Department said she conceded she was an "alien terrorist," ending her residency status after prosecutors accused her of radicalizing family members tied to a 2024 Election Day mass-shooting plot inspired by Islamic State.
That court, created in 1996 to handle terrorism-related removals using classified national-security evidence, had never been used before proceedings began in July.
Haji Zada was never criminally charged, and her court-appointed lawyers said they were denied access to the evidence, arguing the process violates due-process rights and could be struck down as unconstitutional.