Washington, 3 August 2024 (dpa/MIA) - The plea deals with the alleged mastermind of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and two other defendants have been withdrawn, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Friday.

On Wednesday, the US Department of Defense said it had reached a plea deal with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two co-accused.

However, "in light of the significance of the decision," Austin had decided "the responsibility for such a decision should rest with me," he wrote in a memorandum to Susan Escallier, the convening authority of military commissions.

"I hereby withdraw from the three pre-trial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024 in the above-referenced case," the memo added.

The September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks involved four passenger jets that were hijacked and used to target the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon defence headquarters outside Washington. Almost 3,000 people were killed.

Mohammed is believed to be the mastermind behind the attacks, coordinating communication and financing for the operation.

He was arrested in Pakistan in 2003, and in 2006 was transferred to the prison at Guantánamo, where he was slated to face trial before a military tribunal for his involvement. However, the trial against him and multiple co-defendants had been delayed for several years.

Former president George W Bush established the prison at the Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba to hold suspected terrorists following the attacks.

Despite calls from human rights organizations for its closure, a small number of detainees are still being held there. 

Photo: MIA Archive