Washington.- U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday annulled a plea deal reached this week for the accused mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and two other accomplices, reinstating them as cases that can be punished with the death penalty.
The move came two days after the military commission at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, announced it had reached plea agreements with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two accomplices in the attacks.
Letters sent to the families of the nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks carried out by Al Qaeda indicated that the court agreement stipulated that the three would be sentenced to life in prison.
Some families of the attack victims condemned the deal for eliminating any chance of full trials and possible death sentences. Republicans were quick to criticize President Joe Biden’s administration for the deal, though after it was announced the White House said it had no prior knowledge of it.
In an order released late Friday, Austin wrote that he had decided that he had the authority to make a decision on whether to accept the settlements. Austin vacated them.
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