Defense secretary rejects 9/11 plea deals

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Friday overrode the decision of a military prosecutor to let the terrorists who planned the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks plead guilty and spend life in prison. Austin did not explain his reason for revoking the plea deals, which sparked the anger of lawmakers and surviving family members of 9/11 victims. Terry Strada, who heads the organization 9/11 Families United, told CBS News the plea deals felt like a betrayal. In a letter to President Joe Biden on Friday, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said the White House was “allowing these terrorists to avoid the death penalty, signaling to our enemies that the United States is reluctant to pursue full justice against those who attack our nation.”

Who is the 9/11 mastermind? Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is an al-Qaeda terrorist from Pakistan. He has confessed to plotting not only the 9/11 attacks but also the 1993 bombing at the World Trade Center in New York City, the 2002 killing of American journalist Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, and other terror attacks. He was captured in 2003 in Pakistan by the CIA and Pakistani intelligence. He has been held at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since 2008, along with co-defendants Walid Bin 'Attash and Mustafa al Hawsawi.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read Esther Eaton’s report on efforts to care for first responders whose health was damaged during 9/11 recovery.