The Pentagon has reversed a plea deal that was struck between prosecutors and three of the terrorists responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks, including mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammad. The deal, which was reached without the knowledge or consultation of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, was met with strong opposition from families of the victims and lawmakers, ultimately leading to its withdrawal.
Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh stated that the deal was not something that the secretary was consulted on. “This is not something that the secretary was consulted on,” she told reporters. “We were not aware that the prosecution or defense would enter the terms of the plea agreement.”
The Biden administration swiftly moved to revoke the agreement in the face of mounting public backlash. The deal, which would have taken the death penalty off the table for Mohammad, as well as collaborators Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin ‘Attash, and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi, was seen by many as a betrayal of the victims and a lenient approach towards the perpetrators of one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in American history.
The defendants are currently being held at a military installation in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Austin’s decision to revoke the agreement came after retired brigadier general and senior Defense Department official Susan Escallier, whom Austin had appointed to the Office of Military Commissions (OMC), informed him about the deal.
“Effective immediately, in the exercise of my authority, I hereby withdraw from the three pretrial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024,” Austin wrote in a letter.
While the Pentagon has taken responsibility for the deal, the Biden administration has denied any involvement in the negotiation process.
“This is not something that we were involved in,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters last week. “We had no role in that process. The president had no role. The vice president had no role. I had no role. The White House had no role,” National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan stated in a press briefing. “And we were informed yesterday — the same day that they went out publicly — that this pretrial agreement had been accepted by the convening authority.”
However, the families of the 9/11 victims and lawmakers have expressed deep disappointment and anger, accusing the Biden administration of seeking to downplay the severity of the attacks and appease the perpetrators.
“They’re the ones that want this off of their plate. It’s an election year,” Terry Strada, the national chair of 9/11 Families United, told Fox News Digital. “They (terrorists) committed this heinous crime against the United States. They should have faced the charges, faced the trial and faced the punishment. Since when do the people responsible for murder get to call the shots?”
The fallout from the revoked plea deal has reignited the debate surrounding the treatment of individuals accused of terrorism and the balance between justice for victims and due process for defendants. As the US prepares for the upcoming election, the case of the 9/11 terrorists continues to be a politically sensitive and emotionally charged issue.
