Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday overturned a plea agreement reached earlier this week for the accused mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and two other defendants, reinstating the death penalty as a possible outcome.
The decision comes just two days after the military commission at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, announced it had reached plea deals with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two alleged accomplices in the attacks.
Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) released the following statement regarding Secretary Austin’s decision to revoke the 9/11 terrorists’ plea deal:
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“We are pleased that Secretary Austin has reconsidered, taken our warnings to heart, and is now addressing the concerns of 9/11 victims and their families.
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s consideration of a plea deal with terrorists responsible for mass murder was disgraceful. America needs a Commander-in-Chief dedicated to maintaining peace through strength, not chaos through weakness.
“The President must understand that we are closely monitoring this situation. The Justice for 9/11 Act has been introduced, and if the Administration ever reconsiders, we are prepared to overturn any future cowardly plea deals with the mastermind behind that tragic day.
“The United States of America must remain steadfast in holding terrorists accountable for their actions.”
Letters sent to families of the nearly 3,000 people killed in the al-Qaida attacks stated that the plea agreement stipulated the three would serve life sentences, according to the AP.
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Some families of the attack’s victims condemned the deal for cutting off the possibility of full trials and potential death penalties, the AP reported.
Republicans quickly criticized the Biden administration for the deal, although the White House said it had no prior knowledge of it. In an order released Friday night, Austin wrote that “in light of the significance of the decision,” he had decided the authority to make a decision on accepting the plea agreements was his. He nullified the agreements.
Mohammed and the other defendants had been expected to formally enter their pleas under the deal as soon as next week.
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