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DOJ Uses Alien Terrorist Removal Court For First Time In ISIS Case

The Justice Department invoked the Alien Terrorist Removal Court on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, seeking to remove an Afghan woman accused of ties to an Election Day terror plot.[1]

The filing asks the court to order the woman's deportation on alleged terrorism grounds instead of pursuing public criminal charges.[1] CBS News described the tribunal as a secretive, little-used forum for removing noncitizens on national security grounds.[2]

The Alien Terrorist Removal Court was created about 30 years ago and, Fox News reports, has been essentially dormant for roughly three decades until this action.[1] Fox framed the administration's move as the tribunal's first activation in decades.[1]

  1. Fox News
  2. CBS News
National Security and Terrorism Immigration & Demographic Change Federal Courts and DOJ National Security & Counterterrorism Immigration Courts and Enforcement
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July 30, 2026
4:29 AM
Trump admin invokes 30-year dormant terror court as it seeks to deport Afghan woman tied to Election Day plot
Foxnews
New information:
  • Fox News reports the Trump administration has invoked the Alien Terrorist Removal Court in the case of an Afghan woman allegedly tied to an Election Day plot, confirming the same use described previously and framing it as the first activation of the 30‑year‑old tribunal.
  • The Fox report emphasizes that the court has been dormant for roughly three decades and is now being used specifically to try to deport this Afghan woman over alleged terrorism connections.
  • Article publication on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, reinforces that the application is active and that the administration is proceeding with the ATRC mechanism against this specific respondent.