9/11 Trial for Alleged Mastermind Set for June 2028
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A US military judge has set 5 June 2028 as the trial date for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three other men accused of plotting the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States.
Mohammed, regarded as a senior al-Qaeda figure, was captured in Pakistan in March 2003. He is accused of helping develop and direct the plot to hijack four passenger planes, three of which were crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The fourth crashed in Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 people were killed.
The trial date is 18 months later than prosecutors had requested, giving the defence and prosecution more time to resolve outstanding pretrial disputes. The case has already been delayed for more than two decades, while a previous trial date in 2021 was cancelled.
Mohammed will stand trial alongside Walid bin Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, who are accused of helping organise or facilitate the attacks.
A proposed plea deal that would have seen Mohammed and two co-defendants receive life imprisonment instead of facing possible execution was rejected last year.
The case also faces questions over whether the defendants can receive a fair trial following their treatment, including alleged torture, while held in CIA custody.
All four men remain among the final detainees at the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
