Three men allegedly accused of orchestrating the 11 September 2001 (9/11) terrorist attacks have reached a plea agreement with US prosecutors, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin Attash, and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al-Hawsawi will plead guilty to conspiracy charges, potentially avoiding the death penalty in exchange for life sentences.
According to US news outlets, this plea deal marks a significant development in the long-delayed legal proceedings, which have been stalled for years by pre-trial manoeuvres while the accused have been detained at the Guantanamo Bay military base in Cuba.
The specific terms of the agreement have not been disclosed, according to the Pentagon.
The New York Times reported that the plea deal includes the removal of the death penalty as a possible punishment, with the accused agreeing to plead guilty to all charges, including the murder of nearly 3,000 people.
The letter from chief prosecutor Rear Admiral Aaron Rugh read:
“In exchange for the removal of the death penalty as a possible punishment, these three accused have agreed to plead guilty to all of the charged offenses, including the murder of the 2,976 people listed in the charge sheet.”
The agreement was communicated to the families of the victims in a letter, which also noted that the defendants would answer questions about their roles in the attacks.
The letter acknowledged that the plea agreement would likely elicit a range of emotions among the families of the victims, recognising the mixed reactions to the decision. The prosecution argued that after 12 years of pre-trial litigation, the plea deal was the best way to achieve justice and finality.
The legal proceedings against the accused have been ongoing for over 16 years, largely due to legal disputes regarding evidence obtained through enhanced interrogation techniques.
The attacks on 11 September 2001 involved four hijacked airliners, with two crashing into the World Trade Center in New York, one into the Pentagon, and the fourth crashing in Pennsylvania after passengers attempted to retake control of the plane.
Mohammed, allegedly believed to be the mastermind behind the attacks, has been linked to multiple terrorist plots against the United States. He was captured in Pakistan in 2003 and has been held at Guantanamo Bay since 2006. Bin Attash and Hawsawi are accused of supporting the 9/11 plot and other attacks, including the bombing of the USS Cole.
The guilty pleas are expected to be formally entered in court as early as next week. The exact location where any sentence will be served remains unclear.
The White House stated that it had no involvement in the plea negotiations, and the decision has faced criticism, particularly from Republican leaders and some families of the victims.
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