9/11 Mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed To Face Trial In 2028, Nearly 27 Years After Attacks

A US military judge has determined June 5, 2028, as the impending trial date for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three other individuals accused of orchestrating the September 11, 2001, terrorist assaults, marking nearly 27 years since the catastrophic events that claimed the lives of approximately 3,000 people. The trial, which will commence 18 months later than the January 2027 target set by prosecutors, is necessitated by the resolution of pretrial disputes, encompassing disagreements regarding the admissible evidence in the courtroom.

Over two decades have seen the US military and subsequent administrations endeavor to bring Mohammed to trial, who stands accused of scheming one of the most lethal attacks ever inflicted upon the United States. The scheduled June 2028 trial hinges on the case adhering to set deadlines and milestones, and it may face further postponements.

A similar trial was initially planned for 2021 but was subsequently canceled. Mohammed is accused of devising and managing the plot to ram hijacked airplanes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, while a separate hijacked aircraft crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. Three additional defendants, Walid bin Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, are also to face trial.

These four individuals constitute the final detainees incarcerated at the US military installation in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. A federal appeals court recently dismissed a plea deal that would have enabled Mohammed to plead guilty while circumventing the potential of facing execution for the al-Qaida attacks of 2001. This proposed deal entailed life sentences without parole for Mohammed and two of his co-defendants, along with their obligation to address lingering inquiries from the victims' families concerning the attacks.

The former President Joe Biden's administration withdrew its support for the agreement after it had been negotiated for two years.