U.S. Senate Judiciary chairman urges Defense Secretary to restore 9/11 suspects' plea deals

The Democrat chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Dick Durbin, has called on Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to reverse his recent decision to withdraw plea agreements with three alleged masterminds of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The plea deals, which reportedly would have spared the accused from the death penalty, were initially reached with Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak bin Attash, and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi. However, Secretary Austin revoked these agreements last week, citing the need for such significant decisions to rest with him as the superior convening authority, Fox News reports.

Durbin expressed his disappointment with Austin's decision on social media platform X, stating, "I urge Secretary Austin to reverse this deeply disappointing decision, which denies finality and justice to 9/11 families and exposes yet again the lack of independence that has haunted the military commissions from the outset."

I urge Secretary Austin to reverse this deeply disappointing decision, which denies finality and justice to 9/11 families and exposes yet again the lack of independence that has haunted the military commissions from the outset. https://t.co/75aFCyhQtq

— Senator Dick Durbin (@SenatorDurbin) August 4, 2024

Senator Mike Lee described the original deal as "a slap in the face to America and her honored dead."

In response to the backlash, Secretary Austin not only withdrew the plea agreements but also relieved the official who had coordinated the deals under his authority. In his order, Austin stated, "Effective immediately, I hereby withdraw your authority in the above-referenced case to enter into a pre-trial agreement and reserve such authority to myself."