Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin revokes plea deal for accused 9/11 terrorists in shocking reversal

 

Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin on Friday revoked the shocking plea deals that would have spared the death penalty for the accused mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and two alleged accomplices.

In an official memo, Austin, 70, announced he had relieved the official responsible for signing off on the widely criticized plea agreements from authority and would instead assert his own authority in the matter.

“I have determined that, in light of the significance of the decision to enter into pre-trial
agreements with the accused in the above-referenced case, responsibility for such a decision should rest with me as the superior convening authority under the Military Commissions Act of 2009,” Austin wrote.

“Effective immediately, I hereby withdraw your authority in the above-referenced case to enter into a pre-trial agreement and reserve such authority to myself,” he continued.

“Effective immediately, in the exercise of my authority, I hereby withdraw from the three pre-trial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024 in the above-referenced case.”

The Office of Military Commissions (OMC), which is prosecuting the case, confirmed on Wednesday it had entered into pre-trial agreements with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed — the accused principal architect of the al Qaeda attacks — and two alleged co-conspirators, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin Attash and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi, all of whom have been held at the US military prison on the coast of Cuba since 2003.

The guilty plea hearings — to charges including murder and conspiracy — were scheduled to take place as early as next week, with the sentencing hearings expected sometime next summer, according to the letter obtained by The Post.

The OMC letter revealed that the terror suspects have also agreed to respond to any questions the family members of victims have “regarding their roles and reasons for conducting the September 11 attacks.”

Family members were told they were allowed to submit questions which would be funneled to the men through their defense attorneys and answered within 90 days.