A Judge Has Ruled That A Woman Who Left The US For ISIS Is Not An American Citizen

A federal judge ruled Thursday that Hoda Muthana, a US-born woman who left the country for ISIS, is not an American citizen, and therefore the government has no obligation to facilitate her return.

Judge Reggie Walton said there was sufficient evidence that Muthana had been born while her father, who once represented Yemen in the United Nations, still had diplomatic status in the US.

Walton also ruled that Muthana's father could not provide financial support to his daughter and grandson, who was born under ISIS territory and whom he has never met, without being subject to charges of providing material support to terrorism.

Muthana, 25, left her home in Alabama in November 2014 and lived under ISIS control until she escaped to a Kurdish refugee camp in late 2018. She has a 2 year-old-son, Adam, from her second marriage to an ISIS fighter.

BuzzFeed News exclusively profiled her after she arrived in ISIS-controlled territory in 2015

Since she was identified in a Guardian interview Feb. 17, Muthana has expressed a strong desire to return to the United States, regardless of the legal consequences she will likely face. She has maintained this stance in her sporadic communications to her lawyers — who emphasized this point in court — and interviews with multiple media outlets over the past nine months.

Ahmed Ali Muthana is pictured during his time as First Secretary with the Yemeni Mission to the United Nations

The lawsuit concerning Muthana's citizenship is centered on whether or not her father, Ahmed Ali Muthana, was a diplomat at the time of her birth.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates and follow BuzzFeed News on Twitter.