WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday withdrew the plea deal for the three men accused of planning the 9/11 attacks.
“Today, Secretary Austin signed a memo reserving for himself the specific authority to enter into pre-trial agreements with the accused in the 9/11 military commission cases,” the Defense Department said in a press release. “In addition, as the superior convening authority, the Secretary has also withdrawn from the pre-trial agreements that were signed in those cases.”
Austin announced the move in a memo addressed to Susan Escallier, the convening authority for military commissions, who had worked to negotiate the deal.
“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,” Austin said in the letter.
Officials said on Wednesday that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin ‘Attash and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi had reached plea agreements. The three men were expected to plead guilty to lesser charges that would prevent them from receiving the death penalty.
The plea deal had been negotiated among the accused men, their attornies and Escallier. Officials previously said that the accused had been scheduled to appear at a hearing at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba next week.
Mohammed is accused of being a mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks, which killed 2,977 people.
A White House National Security Council spokesperson declined to comment, referring NBC News to the Defense Department. The Defense Department declined to comment beyond the press release.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Tim Stelloh and Courtney Kube contributed.
