This was ruled by the military appeals court on Tuesday Defense Minister Lloyd Austin cannot overturn the plea deals of Guantanamo Bay detainees, including alleged 9/11 architect Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, Fox News has learned.
The court opinion, which has not yet been officially released, said the plea deals reached by military prosecutors and lawyers were valid and enforceable and that Austin overstepped his authority when he later tried to overturn them.
The Pentagon has the option of appealing to the federal appeals court for the D.C. Circuit for emergency review, but there were no filings in the court docket as of Tuesday afternoon.
JUDGE RULES CONTROVERSIAL PLEA DEALS FOR 9/11 TERRORISTS INVOLVING KHALID SHEIKH MOHAMMED: REPORT
The hearing is scheduled for next week at Guantanamo BayCuba, where Mohammad and two other defendants could plead guilty in separate hearings, with the death penalty abolished as a possible penalty.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tried to revoke the 9/11 plea deals in July. (Reuters/Violeta Santos Moura)
The charge deals in protracted case against the terrorists were launched over the summer and approved by the top official of the Gitmo military commission.
The plea deals were condemned by numerous 9/11 victims and American politicians.
A photo obtained on March 1, 2003 shows Khalid Sheikh Mohammed shortly after his capture. (HO/AFP via Getty Images)
“Joe Biden, Kamala Harris armed themselves Ministry of Justice to go after their political opponents, but make a sweet deal with the 9/11 terrorists,” Vice President-elect JD Vance said at the time.
Pictures of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed released by the FBI and President Bush during a press conference announcing the list of most wanted terrorists. (Mai/Getty Images)
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The Pentagon canceled the contracts in July. “Effective immediately, in the exercise of my authority, I am hereby withdrawing from the three pretrial agreements you signed on July 31, 2024,” the letter from Austin said.
This is a developing news story. Check again for updates. Fox News’ Andrea Margolis contributed to this report.
