Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan national who had lived in Fort Worth, Texas, was removed from the United States in the first case brought before the United States Alien Terrorist Removal Court. Zada conceded that she is an alien terrorist, waived an appeal, and is now permanently inadmissible to the United States.
The court issued its removal order on Aug. 20, and the order was unsealed Sept. 11 after Zada returned to her country of origin. Attorney General Todd Blanche certified the removal application, which was filed July 15, and ATRC Chief Judge Joan N. Ericksen presided over Zada’s first open-court appearance on July 30 before later signing the order.
The Justice Department said Zada supported her family’s plan for an ISIS-inspired mass shooting on Election Day in 2024. Her son, Abdullah Haji Zada, and son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, had previously been arrested and convicted in connection with the plot. The government used classified information under the ATRC statute to establish its case and provided Zada and her two federal public defenders with approximately half a terabyte of supporting documents. With counsel, she conceded the government’s designation and waived her right to appeal, ending her previous status.
Tawhedi and Abdullah Haji Zada were arrested Oct. 7, 2024, after buying firearms and ammunition from an undercover FBI employee for the planned attack. Abdullah, who was 17 when arrested, pleaded guilty as an adult and received a 15-year prison sentence. Under his plea agreement, he stipulated to removal to Afghanistan after incarceration, termination of his lawful permanent resident status, and broad waivers of challenges to his conviction and removal, including seeking asylum. Tawhedi, 28, pleaded guilty on June 13, 2025, to two terrorism-related offenses involving material support for ISIS and firearms and ammunition; he is awaiting sentencing.
According to court documents, Tawhedi admitted conspiring between June and October 2024 to obtain two AK-47 rifles, 500 rounds of ammunition and 10 magazines for a mass-casualty attack on or around Nov. 5, 2024, on behalf of ISIS. A criminal complaint said the family sold property to raise funds, Zada signed a contract to sell the family home, and family members bought one-way tickets to Kabul shortly before Election Day. The tickets included Zada and other minor children but excluded Abdullah and Tawhedi.
Congress established the specialized federal court in 1996 to remove alien terrorists when the government proves by a preponderance of the evidence that an alien is a terrorist. The court may consider classified information when public disclosure would risk national security, provides paid counsel when necessary, and permits appeals by either party to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Federal district judges appointed to the ATRC by the chief justice staff the court.