US deports Afghan permanent resident in first Alien Terrorist Removal Court case

September 13, 2026 at 02:19 AM2 min

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The United States deported Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan legal permanent resident from Texas, in the first-ever use of the Alien Terrorist Removal Court. The Justice Department said she conceded she is an alien terrorist and waived appeal of the removal order. Her lawyers argued the secretive proceedings violated her due process rights.

Key Facts

Nazira Haji Zada, 47, was deported from the US after choosing to leave rather than continue her case before the Alien Terrorist Removal Court.
The Alien Terrorist Removal Court, created in 1996, had never heard a case before the July proceedings against Haji Zada.
Haji Zada was never charged with a crime, but her son Abdullah Haji Zada and son-in-law Nasir Ahmad Tawhed were convicted of plotting a mass shooting on Election Day 2024.
US Attorney General Todd Blanche called the case "a win for national security and the rule of law."

Deportation Proceedings

Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan citizen with legal permanent residency in Fort Worth, Texas, was deported from the United States. She chose to leave the US rather than continue to argue her case before the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, according to the Department of Justice and her lawyers. The court, created in 1996, had never heard a case before the proceedings in July. It is meant for non-US citizens facing terrorism-related charges when the evidence is confidential and related to national security.

Due Process Concerns

Lawyers for Haji Zada argued that the case violated her right to due process under the US Constitution. Court-appointed lawyers Matthew Farley and Mary Manning Petras said they were denied access to the evidence in her case. They stated that dragging lawful permanent residents into court without showing them or their attorneys the evidence is a plain violation of due process. The lawyers expressed confidence that the Alien Terrorist Removal Court will be struck down as unconstitutional as soon as a judge is asked to address the issue.