Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed shock upon learning of an agreement made between prosecutors and the orchestrator of the September 11 attacks, along with two other conspirators.
“The secretary was not consulted regarding this matter,” Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh informed reporters during a briefing on Monday. “We had no knowledge that the prosecution or defense would finalize the terms of the plea deal.”
The Biden administration subsequently revoked the agreement following public outcry and anger from the victims’ families.
SOCIAL MEDIA VIDEO OF PHILADELPHIA MAYOR FUELS SPECULATION ABOUT KAMALA HARRIS AS RUNNING MATE
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin testifies before a Senate Appropriations Committee on Capitol Hill. Austin withdrew a plea deal involving three terrorists connected to the September 11 attacks and the government. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/Associated Press)
“He believes that the families and the American public should have the chance to see military commission trials conducted in this case,” Singh stated.
Austin nullified the agreement last week after prosecutors accepted a deal that would have spared 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammad and his associates, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin ‘Attash, and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi, from the death penalty.
The defendants are currently held at a military facility in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.
“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 indicated.
This decision was made by retired brigadier general Susan Escallier, a senior Defense Department official whom Austin appointed to the Office of Military Commissions (OMC), as reported by the New York Post.
9/11 VICTIMS’ FAMILIES AND LAWMAKERS RESPOND TO PLEA DEAL WITH TERRORISTS: ‘A SLAP IN THE FACE’
Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, a suspected al-Qaeda operative, is depicted in this photo released by the FBI on October 10, 2001, in Washington, D.C. Reports suggested on October 21, 2003, that U.S. officials believed Mohammed was involved in the murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan. (Getty Images)
No explanation was provided regarding why the matter was not resolved before the agreements were finalized and made public.
The arrangement left the families of 9/11 victims and lawmakers stunned, with many attributing the blame to Biden for being lenient towards the terrorists.
“They want to wash their hands of it. It’s an election year,” commented Terry Strada, national chair of 9/11 Families United, to Fox News Digital. “These terrorists committed a horrific act against the United States. They should be held accountable, face trial, and receive the appropriate punishment. Since when do those responsible for such atrocities dictate the terms?”
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan stated that the Biden administration was not involved in the now-revoked plea deal.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan speaks during a daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on August 1. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“We were not involved in this process at all,” Jean-Pierre told reporters last week.
“We had no part in that agreement. The president was uninvolved. The vice president was uninvolved. I was uninvolved. The White House had no involvement,” Sullivan stated in a Thursday press briefing. “We were only informed yesterday — the same day that the agreement was publicly announced — that this pretrial arrangement had been approved by the convening authority.”
