WASHINGTON, Aug 1 : Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, an alleged accused of the 9/11 attack, has agreed to plead guilty, the US defence department informed on Wednesday. The alleged mastermind of 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in the pre-trial discussions, going on for the last 27 months, finally agreed to plead guilty for the September 11, 2001 attack that killed 2,976. As per a letter issued by government agencies, the agreement finalized after 27 months of discussions eliminates death penalty for Walid Bin Attash and Mustafa Al Hawsawi. The letter was forwarded to the families of the survivors and victims, said a report in CNN. Negotiations that started in 2022, ended with three men agreeing to plead guilty for all the charges levied on them, including the murder of the 2,976 individuals stated the chargesheet and letter conveyed to the families.
Khalid along with his two alleged co-dependants Walid bin Attash and Mustafa Al Hawsawi are expected to submit the guilty pleas at a hearing that may commence early next week. The prosecutors in their letter said, “We recognize that the status of the case in general, and this news in particular, will understandably and appropriately elicit intense emotion, and we also realize that the decision to enter into a pre-trial agreement will be met with mixed reactions amongst the thousands of family members who lost loved ones.” “The decision to enter into a pre-trial agreement after 12 years of pre-trial litigation was not reached lightly; however, it is our collective, reasoned, and good-faith judgment that this resolution is the best path to finality and justice in this case.” Peter Bergen, CNN, national security analyst and national terrorism expert, said that the plea agreement is a best possible deal in the real world. This agreement avoids a long, complicated death penalty trial.
The government tackled the difficult challenge of handling the case that was stalled for two decades after the arrest of Khalid in 2003 from Pakistan for his involvement in the 9/11 attacks. Bergen told CNN, Khalid and his accomplices are getting a better deal as the case is still in pre-trial hearing.
Khalid in 2008 was charged with a list of crimes including conspiracy, murder in the violation of law of war, attacking civilians and civilian objects, destruction of property, purposely causing serious bodily injury and terrorism and material support of terrorism. The US had said it would seek death penalty for Khalid. The military’s trial against Khalid and his co-conspirators was delayed as the authenticity and admissibility of the evidence obtained by torturing Khalid and others at secret CIA prison in 2000s had to be determined by the US court. The trial was supposed to begin on January 11,2021 but got delayed due to two judges resignations and coronavirus pandemic. It is expected that the hearing might begin next summer. The prosecutors met the survivors and victims families and told that they might get a chance to express their views on how the attacks impacted you and your family. The defendants agreed to answer written questions from surviving victims and victims families as why they conducted deadly 9/11 attacks. The relatives of 9/11 attacks gave mixed reactions, some welcomed the form of accountability while others expressed displeasure that the defendants will not face death sentence. The long wait for justice has been frustrating for the families. The Biden administration is under pressure to shut down the controversial Guantanamo detention center, where detainees from “war on terror ” are held. (UNI)
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