US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has revoked a plea deal for three men accused of involvement in the 9/11 attacks, according to a memo sent to overseer of the war court proceedings, Susan Escallier. The deal had been reached with alleged mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his two accomplices in exchange for guilty pleas and life in prison sentences. Austin argued that such significant decisions should rest with him as the superior convening authority.
Victims’ families expressed mixed reactions to the deal, with some feeling it denied them the opportunity for a full trial and others seeing it as a way to achieve finality. Republican lawmakers, including Mitch McConnell and JD Vance, criticized the deal, while New York congresswoman Elise Stefanik accused the Biden-Harris administration of betrayal. However, a senior Pentagon official clarified that the president and vice-president were not involved in Austin’s decision to rescind the deal.
The five defendants in the 9/11 attacks have been awaiting trial since 2008, with preliminary hearings delayed due to the torture they suffered while in CIA custody. This has raised uncertainties about full trials and verdicts due to the inadmissibility of evidence linked to the torture. Mohammed and his co-defendants were expected to enter their pleas under the now-revoked deal soon.
The 9/11 attacks killed nearly 3,000 people and led the United States into a two-decade-long war in Afghanistan. The military commission overseeing the cases has faced challenges in moving forward due to the torture issue.
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