A military judge is putting the controversial plea deals involving 9/11 terrorist Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two codefendants back on the table, contradicting an order by Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin earlier this year.
An anonymous official told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the decision to reinstate the deals was made by Air Force Col. and Judge Matthew McCall. The U.S. military has not announced the ruling yet.
The plea deals in the long-running case against the terrorists were struck earlier this summer. The defendants are incarcerated in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the deals were approved by the top official of the Gitmo military commission.
If the plea bargains go through, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed – suspected of being the principal architect of the 9/11 attacks – and two codefendants would avoid the death penalty in exchange for guilty pleas.
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The plea deals have been condemned by a number of 9/11 victims and U.S. politicians. “Joe Biden, Kamala Harris have weaponized the Department of Justice to go after their political opponents, but they’re cutting a sweetheart deal with 9/11 terrorists,” Sen. JD Vance said at the time. The Pentagon revoked the deals in July.
A judge recently made an order supporting a plea bargain involving Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. (Getty Images)
“Effective immediately, in the exercise of my authority, I hereby withdraw from the three pretrial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024,” a letter from Austin states.
The Biden administration has distanced itself from the agreements. In July, Pentagon officials said that Austin was surprised by the news of the deals.
Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, a suspected al Qaeda terrorist, is shown in this photo released by the FBI October 10, 2001 in Washington, D.C. Mohammed was arrested at a house in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. (Getty Images)
“This is not something that the secretary was consulted on,” Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said at the time. “We were not aware that the prosecution or defense would enter the terms of the plea agreement.”
Terry Strada, the national chair of 9/11 Families United, condemned the plea bargains to Fox News Digital earlier this year.
“[The terrorists] committed this heinous crime against the United States,” Strada said. “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?”
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Fox News Digital reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Andrea Margolis is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Readers can send story tips to andrea.margolis@fox.com.
