Lloyd Austin revokes plea deal for alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and 2 others

NEW YORK -- U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has revoked the plea deal for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two other 9/11 defendants on Friday, just two days after a plea agreement was reached with prosecutors.

Austin said he is now taking oversight of the military tribunal at Guantanamo. The move once again places the death penalty on the table for Mohammed and the two other 9/11 accomplices.

All of this comes after the surprising news earlier this week that military prosecutors had worked out a plea deal with the three 9/11 plotters that guaranteed them life in prison instead of the death penalty. The move angered many 9/11 families though some had come to accept it.

The move was quietly announced by the Department of Defense in a memo from Austin that was posted on the Pentagon's press site late Friday night.

In the memo to retired Brig. Gen. Susan K. Escallier, who signed the plea deal for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi prison. By taking over responsibility for the cases Austin assumed direct oversight and immediately canceled the agreement.

"Responsibility for such a decision should rest with me," Austin said in the memo. "Effective immediately, in the exercise of my authority, I hereby withdraw from the three pretrial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024."

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.