First-ever US alien terrorist removal court case ends with Afghan woman deported

According to a statement issued by the department, Zada supported a plot to carry out an ISIS-inspired mass shooting on Election Day in 2024. Her son, Abdullah Haji Zada, and son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, were previously arrested in connection with the plot.

“The ATRC issued an order of removal on Aug. 20 that was unsealed earlier today following her return to her country of origin,” the department said.

The case marked the first time the ATRC, which was established by Congress decades ago but had not been used by any previous administration, was invoked. Zada is now permanently inadmissible to the United States.

The application seeking Zada’s removal, certified by Attorney General Todd Blanche, was filed on July 15. She appeared in open court for the first time on July 30.

ATRC Chief Judge Joan N. Ericksen presided over the hearing and later signed the removal order. In accordance with the ATRC statute, the government relied on classified information to establish that Zada qualified as an “alien terrorist”.

The government also provided Zada and her lawyers, two federal public defenders, with approximately half a terabyte of documents supporting its case.

With the assistance of her lawyers, Zada conceded that she was an “alien terrorist” and waived her right to appeal the removal order, thereby terminating her previous immigration status.

“This landmark case, resulting in the prompt removal of this alien terrorist to her country of origin, is a win for national security and the rule of law,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said.

“Those who support and condone terrorism should not be living in the United States, and this first-ever case before the ATRC shows how the Department will use every tool at its disposal to protect our country,” he added.

FBI Director Kash Patel called the case a “historic and vitally important step” in efforts to protect the US homeland from terrorism.

“An individual who supported a plot by ISIS-sympathizing family members to commit an attack in America has paid the price for that,” Patel said. “She came to our country, betrayed it, and has now lost the right to live here and enjoy our democratic freedoms.”

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the removal of Zada fulfilled the Trump administration’s commitment to prioritising national security.

“Those who plot acts of terrorism against the United States have no place in our country. We will find them, and we will use every lawful tool available to remove them,” Mullin said.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said Zada had supported a terrorist plot while residing in the US as a resident alien.

“She abused our Nation’s hospitality and represented a clear threat to our national security,” Eisenberg said, adding that the US was safer following the arrests of her sons and her deportation.

Details of the 2024 terror plot

Tawhedi and Abdullah Haji Zada were arrested on October 7, 2024, after purchasing firearms and ammunition from an undercover FBI employee for use in an alleged Election Day terrorist attack.

Abdullah, who was 17 at the time of his arrest, later entered a guilty plea as an adult and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

As part of his plea agreement, Abdullah agreed to a judicial order of removal from the United States to Afghanistan following completion of his prison sentence. He acknowledged that the order would terminate his lawful permanent resident status and waived his right to appeal his conviction except under limited circumstances. He also waived his right to seek various forms of relief from removal, including asylum.

Tawhedi, 28, pleaded guilty on June 13, 2025, to two terrorism-related offences: conspiring and attempting to provide material support and resources to ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organisation, and receiving, attempting to receive and conspiring to receive firearms and ammunition in furtherance of a federal crime of terrorism. He is awaiting sentencing.

According to court documents, Tawhedi admitted that between June and October 2024, he conspired with at least one other person to purchase two AK-47 rifles, 500 rounds of ammunition and 10 magazines with the intention of carrying out a mass-casualty attack on or around Election Day, November 5, 2024, on behalf of ISIS.

A criminal complaint affidavit said Tawhedi communicated with an ISIS facilitator about his plans to acquire firearms for the attack and asked whether 500 rounds of ammunition would be sufficient.

According to the criminal complaint, the family also began selling property in 2024 to raise funds for the planned attack, including furniture, computers, a mobile phone and two vehicles.

Zada signed a contract to sell the family home. The family also purchased one-way air tickets to Kabul, Afghanistan, shortly before Election Day 2024 for several family members, including Zada and other minor children. Abdullah and Tawhedi were not included in the travel arrangements.

The Alien Terrorist Removal Court is a specialised federal court established by Congress in 1996.