In court with “9/11 mastermind” Khalid Sheikh Mohammed

Sitting in the front row of the war tribunal at the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, one of the world's most famous defendants, appeared to be listening intently.

“Can you confirm that Mr. Mohammed pleaded guilty to all charges and specifications without exceptions or alternatives?” The judge asked his lawyer as Mohammed watched.

The lawyer replied: “Yes, we can, Your Honor.”

The 59-year-old Mohammed sits in court, his beard dyed bright orange and wearing a headdress, jacket and trousers, not much like the photo. He was traded shortly after his arrest In 2003.

Mohammed, accused of masterminding the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, was scheduled to plead guilty this week – more than 23 years after nearly 3,000 people were killed in what the US government called “the most horrific criminal act ever.” American soil in modern history.

But two days later, when Mohammed was ready to formally announce his decision — the product of a controversial deal he struck with U.S. government prosecutors — instead, he watched silently as the judge said the proceedings had been temporarily stayed under federal appellate orders. court.

It was expected to be a historic week for an issue that had faced ten years of delay. Now, with a new complication, it continues into an uncertain future.

“It's going to be a trial forever,” said a relative of a September 11 victim.

Mohammed previously said he planned the 9/11 operation from the ground up — conceiving the idea of ​​training pilots to fly commercial planes into buildings and relaying those plans to Osama bin Laden, the leader of the militant Islamist group. The rule.

But he has not yet been able to formally admit his guilt in court. This week's pause comes amid a dispute over an agreement reached last year between US prosecutors and his legal team, under which Mohamed would not face a death penalty trial in exchange for his guilty plea.

The US government has for several months I tried to cancel the agreementSaying that allowing the deal to go ahead would cause “irreparable” harm to her and the American people. Supporters of the deal see it as the only way forward in a case complicated by the torture Mohamed and others suffered in US custody and questions about whether it taints evidence.

After a last-minute appeal by prosecutors, a three-judge panel of the Federal Court of Appeal called for an adjournment to give them time to consider the arguments before making a decision.

But the victims' families had already flown on a weekly flight to the base to watch the pleas in the gallery, where thick glass separated them and members of the press from the rest of the sprawling, high-security courtroom.

Attendees won their place in this week's proceedings through a lottery system. They arranged childcare and paid for kennels for their pets — knowing it could be canceled at any moment. They learned on Thursday night while speaking to the media at a hotel that the appeals would no longer continue.

Elizabeth Miller, whose father, New York City firefighter Douglas Miller, died in the attacks when she was 6, said she supported going ahead with the deal to “find closure,” but realized there were other families who felt that way. He was very lenient.

“What's so frustrating is that every time it turns around, every camper's hopes are raised and then their hopes are dashed again,” she said, as other relatives nodded in agreement.

“It's like a constant state of limbo… It's like a constant injury.”

This week's pause is the latest in a series of delays, complications and controversies at the base, where the US military has now held detainees for 23 years.

The military prison at Guantanamo Bay was established during the “War on Terror” that followed the September 11 attacks that Mohammed was accused of orchestrating. The first detainees were brought there on January 11, 2002.

Former President George Bush had issued a military order to establish military courts to try non-American citizens, saying that they could be detained without charge indefinitely and could not legally challenge their detention.

The 20 men, dressed in bright orange clothing, were taken to a makeshift concentration camp called “X-Ray,” where the cells were open cages and beds were spread on the floor.

The camp, surrounded by barbed wire, has long been deserted and overgrown – weeds grow on the wooden watchtowers and signs along the fence say “OUT OF LIMITS” written in red.

Although conditions at Guantanamo have improved, it still faces criticism from the United Nations and human rights groups over its treatment of detainees. It continues to defy US officials and advocates who hope to shut it down.

As president, Barack Obama pledged to close the prison during his term, saying it went against American values. These efforts have been revived under the Biden administration.

Unlike Mohammed, most people detained there since its establishment have never been charged with any crimes.

Current detention facilities are off-limits to journalists, and access is only permitted to those with security clearance.

Within a short drive are an Irish pub, a McDonald's restaurant, a bowling alley, and a museum, serving military personnel and contractors on base – most of whom have never been inside the prison area before.

As legal teams, journalists and families gathered at the base to receive Mohammed's scheduled pleas, a secret operation was conducted early in the morning to transfer a group of 11 Yemeni detainees from the base for resettlement in Oman.

With this transfer, the base, which once held approximately 800 detainees, now houses only 15 detainees – the lowest number in its history.

Of the rest, all but six are accused or convicted of war crimes, and lawyers are fighting their cases in complex legal battles in the base's heavily guarded courtrooms.

With the court's denial on Friday, the judge said Mohamed's petitions, if allowed to go forward, would now fall to the next US administration.