The trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, accused of being behind the September 11 terror attacks, will begin in June 2028, a military judge ruled.
Mohammed, born in Kuwait, previously said he planned the September 11, 2001 operation “from A to Z”.
He is charged along with three alleged accomplices, Walid bin Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, according to a ruling by the Air Force judge, Lieutenant Colonel Michael A. Schrama, issued on August 26.
Prosecutors requested his trial to begin in January 2027, but Schrama wrote that the trial will begin 18 months later, on June 5, 2028, to ensure that there is enough time to resolve pre-trial disputes, including on what evidence can be presented, the BBC.
Even the start date of 2028 will depend on the pre-trial deadlines and legal disputes, the Associated Press.
? to by U.S. A military judge has scheduled the long-delayed trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three alleged co-conspirators for June 2028 at Guantanamo Bay. Mohammed is accused of masterminding the September 11, 2001 attacks, which killed 3,000 people. pic.twitter.com/Op32gd14Uo
Mohammed, who attended university in the United States in the 1980s, was arrested in Pakistan in 2003, and since 2006 he has been detained in Guantanamo Bay.
He is accused of having had the idea of training pilots to fly commercial aircraft against buildings and of telling Osama bin Laden, the former leader of Al Qaeda, about the plan.
September will mark 25 years since members of the jihadist organization hijacked four aircraft, two of them crashed into the World Trade Center buildings in New York City, one against the Pentagon and another against a camp in Pennsylvania after passengers attempted to regain control of the aircraft.
Over the years, successive U.S. administrations have struggled to bring this 61-year-old to trial for his alleged involvement in what remains the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil, with 2,977 people killed.
According to The Guardian, the case has been delayed by issues that include disputes over whether statements obtained during Mohammed’s detention can be used in the trial. According to reports, he was subjected to coercive interrogation techniques while under custody.
A trial had previously been scheduled for 2021, but was then cancelled, according to AP. Meanwhile, Schrama is the fifth judge to chair the military commission since the accused’s reading of charges in 2012.
