US agrees plea deals with masterminds of 9/11 attacks

In a historic development that marks a potential end to one of the longest-running legal sagas in American history, the United States government has reached plea agreements with three key figures accused of orchestrating the devastating September 11, 2001 attacks.

Among those agreeing to the deal is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, alleged mastermind of the attacks that claimed the lives of nearly 3,000 people.

The Pentagon announced Wednesday that Mohammed, along with co-defendants Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, have entered into pretrial agreements, paving the way for a resolution to the case. While the specific terms of the deals have not been publicly disclosed, reports suggest the defendants will plead guilty in exchange for life imprisonment, avoiding the death penalty.

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The plea agreements come after years of legal wrangling and multiple delays in the military commission proceedings at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Nearly 3,000 people were killed when members of the al-Qaeda group hijacked four domestic flights and flew them into the World Trade Center in New York, and the Pentagon building outside Washington. The fourth plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back against the hijackers.

The attack triggered what then-President George W Bush called the “war on terror”, leading to the US military invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq and years of US operations against armed hardline groups elsewhere in the Middle East.

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