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Supreme Court rejects alleged 9/11 mastermind’s attempt to revive plea deal
NBC News • • world
Key Points:
- The Supreme Court rejected an appeal by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two other alleged 9/11 plotters seeking to enforce a withdrawn plea deal, clearing the way for Mohammed's military commission trial in 2028.
- Mohammed, held at Guantanamo Bay since 2006, is accused of masterminding the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
- The three men had agreed to a 2024 plea deal for life sentences, but Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin later overruled it, asserting authority to do so, a move upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals.
- The defendants argued the appeals court lacked jurisdiction, but the Supreme Court declined to intervene, leaving the government's position intact.
- Trial delays have been partly due to concerns over evidence obtained through CIA torture; a fourth alleged plotter, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, was not part of this appeal.
