The Department of Justice deported an Afghan national who allegedly helped her family attempt an Islamic mass shooting on election day in 2024.
Nazira Haji Zada, 47, who was living in Fort Worth, Texas, was removed after “conceding that she is an alien terrorist,” per a Department of Justice news release on Sept. 11.
Zada helped to organize the ISIS-inspired election day terror attempt, which was to be carried out by her son, Abdullah Haji Zada, and son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi.
This TERRORIST has been removed from the United States!
Nazira Haji Zada, an Afghan national, supported a plot to commit an ISIS-inspired mass shooting on Election Day in 2024, her son-in-law and son were arrested and convicted for their role in the plot.
This deportation is… https://t.co/x0YSPnloOn
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) September 16, 2026
She was deported under the United States Alien Terrorist Removal Court — which Congress had created decades ago but had never before been used to remove a terrorist from the country.
The order of removal came on Aug. 20, and the document was unsealed on Sept. 11.
“The government used classified information to establish that Zada is an alien terrorist,” the Department of Justice said.
THE LAW HAS BEEN ON THE BOOKS SINCE THE 1990s.
We are using every lawful tool available to investigate, prosecute, and stop terrorist attacks — and to remove people from our country who promote terrorist ideology that inspires crimes and attacks against Americans.
-DKP🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/KHY8WsvKdL
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) September 19, 2026
“Additionally, the government provided Zada and her lawyers, two federal public defenders, with approximately half a terabyte of documents supporting the government’s case.”
Zada and her lawyers then conceded she was indeed a terrorist, which led to her removal from the country.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement that “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.”
“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 meanwhile said that “this is a historic and vitally important step in our work to protect the U.S. 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,” he continued.
“She came to our country, betrayed it, and has now lost the right to live here and enjoy our democratic freedoms. This FBI and our Justice Department partners will protect the American people from the threat of terrorism, using all means necessary.”
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