WASHINGTON – Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin resigned on Friday the disputed claim agreement for the three accused planning the 9/11 attacks.
“Today, Secretary Austin signed a memorandum reserving special authority to enter into pre-trial settlements with defendants in 9/11 military commission cases,” the Department of Defense said in a press release. “Furthermore, the Secretary, like the higher summoning authority, withdrew from the pre-trial agreements concluded in those cases.”
Austin announced the move in a memo appealed to Susan Escallier, the convening authority for military commissions that worked to negotiate the deal.
“Effective immediately, I hereby revoke and reserve your authority to enter into a pretrial agreement in the above-mentioned case,” Austin said. letterwhich fires Escallier.
The defense secretary said he made the decision “given the importance” of the plea deal, adding that “responsibility for such a decision must rest with me.”
Officials said on Wednesday Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, Walid Muhammad Saleh Mubarak Bin ‘Attash and Mustafa Ahmad Adam al Hawsawi agreed. The three were expected to plead guilty to lesser charges that would have prevented them from receiving the death penalty, but the terms of the scrapped deal remain unknown.
The plea deal was negotiated between the defendants, their attorneys and Escallier. Officials said earlier that the defendants will appear next week at the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba.
Muhammad is accused of masterminding the 9/11 attacks that killed 2,977 people.
A spokesman for the White House National Security Council declined to comment to NBC News, citing the Defense Department. The Ministry of Defense refused to make a statement to the press.
Republicans in Congress celebrated Austin’s decision to scrap the deal.
Rep. Michael McCaul, who chairs the Republican-led House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he was “glad to see” Austin’s move.
“As I’ve said before, if there’s ever a case where the death penalty is necessary, this is it,” the Texas Republican said. Send to X.
Senator Lindsey Graham, RSC, said Austin was “doing the right thing”.
“The previous plea agreement would have sent completely the wrong signal to terrorists around the world,” Graham said he said. “I know the families of the victims of the 9/11 attacks will appreciate it – as will I.”
The head of 9/11 Justice, a grassroots movement representing the families of 9/11 victims, said he was disappointed that the families were left out of discussions about the proceedings against the suspects.
The group’s president, Brett Eagleson, said: “We are shocked and deeply disappointed that our families were not informed in advance of the plea deal or its subsequent cancellation. “These monsters must be forced to share any information they have about the attacks and be held fully accountable for the murders of our loved ones.”
The plea deal was initially criticized by victims’ families and members of Congress.
The Republican-led House Oversight Committee he said Austin on Friday before announcing his decision to open a White House investigation into his role in the plea deal.
Similarly, Rep. Mike Rogers, Republican of Alabama, who serves as chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, he said In a letter to Austin, he said he was “deeply shocked and angered by the news” of the plea deal.
Eric Holder, a former attorney general who served in the Obama administration, condemned the deal in a statement Thursday.
Holder told NBC News: “The people responsible for this terrible deal did everything they could. They were badly affected by political attacks and by those who lost faith in our justice system.”
Tim Stelloh, Ryan J. Reilly, Sahil Kapoor and Frank Thorpe W contributed.