US court rejects plea deal for '9/11 mastermind' Khalil Sheikh Mohammed
Judges in Washington DC rejected the agreement, which would have given Mohammed and the other defendants a life sentence without parole, in a 2-1 decision on Friday.
Mohammed is accused of organising and directing the 11 September 2001 attacks on the US, in which hijacked planes crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, killing almost 3,000 people. He was captured in 2003 and is being held in Guantanamo Bay, the US prison camp in Cuba.
Under the deal, families of the 9/11 victims would have been allowed to pose questions to Mohammed, who would be required to "answer their questions fully and truthfully", lawyers said.
Relatives of the victims were split on the deal, according to the BBC's US partner CBS News.
Those who objected felt a trial was the best path to justice and to uncovering more information about the attacks.
Supporters saw it as the best hope for getting some answers and finally closing the painful case.
The plea deal was negotiated over two years and approved by military prosecutors and the senior Pentagon official in Guantanamo Bay.
Pre-trial hearings have been going on for more than a decade, complicated by questions over whether torture Mohammed and other defendants faced while in US custody taints the evidence.
In court with the '9/11 mastermind', two decades after his arrest
The '9/11 mastermind' wants to plead guilty. Why is the US trying to stop him?
Following his arrest in Pakistan in 2003, Mohammed spent three years at secret CIA prisons known as "black sites", where he was subjected to simulated drowning, or "waterboarding", 183 times, among other so-called "advanced interrogation techniques" that included sleep deprivation and forced nudity.
In July last year, the Biden administration announced it had struck deals with Mohammed and three other co-defendants.
But then Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin overruled the agreement two days later, saying he was the sole authority who could enter such an agreement.
A military court ruled against Austin's effort in December, which put the agreement to avoid the death penalty back on the table.
On Friday, the appeals court tossed the deal, saying Austin was acting within his authority in December 2024.
"Having properly assumed the convening authority, the Secretary determined that the 'families and the American public deserve the opportunity to see military commission trials carried out.' The Secretary acted within the bounds of his legal authority, and we decline to second-guess his judgment," judges Patricia Millett and Neomi Rao wrote, as reported by the Associated Press.
Judge Robert Wilkins disagreed, saying the government "has not come within a country mile of proving clearly and indisputably that the Military Judge erred."
The '9/11 mastermind' wants to plead guilty. Why is the US trying to stop him?
What happened on 9/11?
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240911-911s-long-legacy-how-the-dust-and-smoke-from-the-twin-towers-attacks-is-still-claiming-lives
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
8 minutes ago
- Forbes
Texas Democrats Flee State To Halt GOP Redistricting Bid—Abbott Threatens Their Removal
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott late on Sunday warned the state's Democratic lawmakers—who fled the state to prevent a vote on a GOP-led redistricting effort—that they will be removed from office unless they return to Austin by Monday afternoon. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Texas Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer (D) listen as Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu speaks to reporters during a press conference at the DuPage County Democratic Party headquarters in Carol Stream, Illinois. Getty Images More than 50 Democratic state lawmakers left the state on Sunday afternoon and flew to Chicago to deny the quorum needed to pass the Republicans' proposed new congressional maps, which could help the GOP gain up to five additional seats in the midterms. The 150-member Texas House needs at least 100 lawmakers to be present to conduct its business and pass legislation. In a statement on X, the Texas House Democratic Caucus accused the GOP and Abbott of using a special House session called to deal with last month's flooding in Central Texas 'as political cover' to pass their redrawn maps. Late on Sunday evening, Illinois' Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker joined a few of the Texas Democrats for a press conference in a Chicago-area suburb and said: 'Donald Trump is trying to cheat the system in Texas, but these Democratic legislators refuse to let it happen without a fight.' Pritzker said his administration is 'going to do everything we can to protect every single one of them,' amid Abbott's demand for their extradition. 'Governor Abbott has turned the victims of a tragedy into political hostages in his submission to Donald Trump. We will not allow disaster relief to be held hostage to a Trump gerrymander. As of today, this corrupt special session is over,' the Texas House Democratic Caucus said in its statement. What Has Gov. Greg Abbott Said? In a statement issued on Sunday night, Abbott bashed the Democratic lawmakers, saying: 'Real Texans do not run from a fight. But that's exactly what most of the Texas House Democrats just did.' He said being present for the special session was their 'duty' and not 'optional,' adding: 'The absconded Democrat House members were elected to meet and vote on legislation—not to prevent votes that may not go their way.' He then added: 'This truancy ends now,' warning that the Democrats must return to the state and be in attendance, 'when the House reconvenes at 3:00 PM on Monday, August 4, 2025.' Abbott warned that if they don't return, he will move to 'remove the missing Democrats from membership in the Texas House.' The governor said he will use a non-binding August 2021 opinion issued by the state's Attorney General, Ken Paxton, to initiate the removal. Paxton opined in 2021 that any lawmaker who attempts to break quorum intentionally could be removed from office due to 'abandonment' of their duties. The Texas House Democrats responded to Abbott's threats to remove their membership from the state House with a single sentence: 'Come and take it.'
Forbes
8 minutes ago
- Forbes
No Friends In The Pipeline: Why 300,000 Black Women Were Pushed Out Of The Workforce
A recently published MSNBC article made headlines for a shocking stat: nearly 300,000 Black women have exited the American labor force in the last three months. The article attributes the mass exodus to reasons like federal job cuts and the dismantling of DEI programs, with issues like inflation, student loan debt, automation, and underrepresentation in growing tech sectors creating a compounded economic risk for Black women. This phenomenon not only hurts Black women but has a ripple effect for the entire U.S. economy, resulting in a loss in the country's gross domestic product (GDP). A less-discussed issue that must be considered is how what is happening is also the cause of a widening network gap faced by Black women. A 2019 article from LinkedIn's Vice President of Social Impact, Meg Garlinghouse, explored the network gap: the unequal access a person has to opportunities based on who they know. Garlinghouse's article cited research that indicates that 70% of professionals get hired at jobs where they know someone who works there. A 2020 study by Chika O. Okafor indicated that non-white job candidates get fewer jobs through referrals because their social network is smaller. With the anti-DEI legislation and a wave of corporate DEI rollbacks, many companies have deprioritized DEI, dismantling programs and initiatives like employee resource groups (ERGs), which provide key opportunities to boost one's professional network. According to Catalyst, ERGs can be thought of as 'voluntary, employee-led groups that foster inclusive work environments aligned with business values, goals, and objectives.' Often ERGs focus on a shared identity (race, religion, being a parent, LGBTQIA+ status, etc.). ERGs provide employees with pathways to network, connect across departments, find mentors, and build relationships but many organizations are quietly shuttering their ERGs amid growing anti-DEI sentiments. Having less opportunities to be in community with employees at different levels in an organization can exacerbate the network gap that Black women face. Mentorship and sponsorship programs, which are often perceived to be DEI or DEI-adjacent, may be halted in the current climate, even though these programs can play an instrumental role in employees' careers, and Black women's career advancement. A wealth of research indicates that Black women leading Fortune 500 companies, as well as those in education, medicine, and tech, routinely report feelings of both hypervisibility and invisibility. Organizational psychologist Dr. Kecia M. Thomas has highlighted the pet to threat concept in her research: the phenomenon in Black women's career trajectories where they go from being the 'pet,' where they are well-liked and celebrated but exploited, to being the 'threat,' where they are seen as posing a risk to the status quo. A 2023 report from Exhale indicated that 36% of Black women have exited a job because they felt unsafe. Black women face a slew of inequities in the workplace and must deal with issues of gendered racism and the angry Black woman stereotype. A 2024 Harvard study also found evidence that when Black women have a higher percentage of white team members, they are more likely to leave their job and less likely to be promoted, revealing the systemic inequities that are entrenched in the workplace. The rise of AI may be making the problem worse. Many of the AI tools that companies lean on to help with hiring decisions may exacerbate existing biases, contributing to hiring gaps when it comes to Black women. Black women are overrepresented in jobs roles that are vulnerable to AI and automation, explained executive leadership coach Margaret Spence in a LinkedIn article. These factors in conjunction with the dismantling of corporate DEI programs makes building and sustaining professional networks for Black women more challenging. What can organizations do to address this issue? First off, workplaces should be intentional about providing employees with opportunities to network with each other. Do you have active mentorship and sponsorship programs in place? If not, how can you get them started? Ensure that equity is foundational in your workplace; frequently audit company policies and practices to ensure fairness and disaggregate employee feedback from anonymous channels, focus groups, and surveys to better understand Black women's experiences. What are Black women saying when they leave your organization? Assess exit interview data to see if patterns are emerging from the Black women who have left. The current anti-DEI legislation was implemented to sow fear and confusion in the workplace. Be aware of the ever-changing laws and stay up to date on local legislation. Consult with legal counsel to better understand what DEI practices are legal. Despite popular misconceptions, there are still many ways to drive fairness and equity while complying with state and federal laws. For Black women, there are some ways to address the network gap. Building community intentionally is vital. Consider joining different community groups, whether in-person or virtually, that align with your goals. This could be an online community for Black women in law, for example, or a meetup group for Black women in cybersecurity. If the community you are seeking doesn't exist, think about ways to create it. Also consider intentional networking on LinkedIn. Many see the platform as a place to go only when job searching but it can also be a great place to build networks, find your people and directly engage with community members. Black women's mass exodus from the U.S. labor market is caused by several different factors. While some reasons, like the DEI rollbacks and federal job cuts, are more obvious, there are issues that are more insidious at play. It's important that we understand what the antecedents are and put measures in place to ensure that Black women are given the support that is needed to thrive. When Black women are given the tools to succeed, everyone across the board will benefit.
Bloomberg
33 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Trump to Name New Fed Governor, Jobs Data Head in Coming Days
By Updated on Save President Donald Trump said he will announce a new Federal Reserve governor and a new jobs data statistician in the coming days, two appointments that may shape his economic agenda amid anxiety over the trajectory of global growth. Trump made the comments to reporters Sunday on his way back to the White House from a weekend in Bedminster, New Jersey. He has faced criticism for his relentless attacks on the Fed and for firing Bureau of Labor Statistics chief Erika McEntarfer after data showed weak jobs growth — moves that are seen as undermining institutions typically viewed as free from political influence.
