Acting U.S. Attorney Todd Blanche speaks about prosecuting unaccompanied minors and their sponsors during a press conference hosted by Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC, USA, June 11, 2026.
Evelyn HochsteinReuter
The Trump administration has filed its first petition before a secret, dormant court established three decades ago to consider government requests to expel so-called “foreign terrorists” from the United States.
The Tribunal for the Elimination of Foreign Terrorists was established in 1996 but had never received a petition until this Wednesday, when the Justice Department filed an application seeking to remove individuals whose names are withheld from a one-page document posted on the Tribunal’s website.
Chief Justice Joanne Ericksen of the five-member court, in a written response to the petition, said the hearing was held Thursday and the court “raised questions about the connection between the government’s alleged conduct of respondents and the specific sections and subsections the government invokes with respect to those conduct.”
“The answers convince the court that the government will have an opportunity for more thoughtful consideration,” wrote Ericksen, a federal judge in Minnesota.
He directed the Justice Department to provide further information by Wednesday.
The court’s powers stem from the 1996 Anti-Terrorism and Death Penalty Act, which allows the attorney general to submit under seal applications for deportation of suspected “foreign terrorists.” If the application is granted, the court must hold a hearing, at which the government has the burden of proving that the individual meets that definition. The application must be approved by the Attorney General or Deputy Attorney General.
Federal law states that an individual can be designated as a “foreign terrorist” by having “engaged in terrorist activities,” supporting or supporting terrorist activities, or belonging to a political or social group that encourages terrorist activities.
The court has been dormant since its creation, and until last week had not accepted applications or held hearings, according to a summary posted on the Federal Judicial Center website. It is made up of five judges selected by Chief Justice John Roberts.
Last year, the Trump administration moved aggressively to deport Venezuelan immigrants, including invoking the 1798 Wartime Act known as the Alien Enemies Act, to remove Venezuelan immigrants whom authorities accuse of being members of terrorist organizations. At a hearing in the case last year, Washington Chief Judge James Boasberg suggested that the Foreign Terrorist Elimination Tribunal would be a natural forum to consider deportation requests on national security grounds.
“Actually, Congress has the answer for us, right? Because they created the Foreign Terrorist Elimination Court,” he said. “So if there are national security concerns about holding these hearings… you can always go to the ATRC, which would be the first time, but that’s what it’s for, right?”
The petition was first reported by independent news site Court Watch.
