US reaches plea deals with three accused of 9/11 attacks
Al Jazeera
The three include Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who is accused of masterminding the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.
The United States has announced plea agreements with three men held in Guantanamo and accused of plotting the September 11, 2001, attacks, including alleged mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
The Pentagon did not release full details of the deals involving Mohammed, Walid bin Attash, and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, but US media reported the three would plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence rather than the death penalty.
They were due to face trial in a military court at the maximum-security facility, but their cases have been bogged down in legal manoeuvring for years.
Karen Greenberg, the director of the Center on National Security at the Fordham University School of Law, said the deals were a significant development.
“It means a lot,” she told Al Jazeera. “It means that this trial, which has been put off for 12 years, will not happen. The issue has been resolved with this plea deal. It means the idea of bringing Guantanamo to closure is one step closer.”
