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In a painful perversion of justice, the U.S. agreed to a plea deal with terrorist mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his two accomplices that spares them the death penalty for the murders of nearly 3,000 Americans on September 11, 2001.
The long-suffering family members of the victims expected and deserved justice, but many will be left angry and disappointed by their own government’s craven surrender.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell properly expressed the outrage felt by others when he said, “The Biden-Harris Administration’s weakness in the face of sworn enemies of the American people apparently knows no bounds.” He called the accepted pleas a revolting abdication of responsibility.
It was already shameful that the case had languished for 21 years in a military tribunal obstructed by unscrupulous defense attorneys and a revolving door of lackluster judges and inept prosecutors. A decade ago, I penned a column attacking the incompetent handling of what is, at its core, an undemanding set of criminal charges.
Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. (Associated Press) (Associated Press)
Proof was never an obstacle. Mohammed not only confessed during questioning at the military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, after he was captured in 2003, but bragged about his heinous deeds. “I was responsible for the 9/11 operation, from A to Z,” he boasted. Beyond that, a mountain of evidence supported an astonishing 169 overt acts that led to mass murder that terrible day.
But the government’s incessant blundering was compounded by then-President Barack Obama who decided, without regard to the families of victims, to drop the military case in favor of a federal court trial, effectively rescuing the defendants from their own imminent convictions and probable executions.
FDNY UNION SLAMS 9/11 PLEA DEAL: ‘WE ARE DISGUSTED AND DISAPPOINTED’
The cacophony of public condemnation and an act of Congress eventually forced Obama to reverse course, sending the entire legal process back to square one. But in a vindictive maneuver, he then deepened the legal quagmire by issuing an executive order to unilaterally alter the Manual for Military Commissions which governs procedures.
To his credit, President Trump directed that no plea deals would be accepted. He refused to negotiate with terrorists, even in a military court. The prosecutions moved forward, only to wither when Joe Biden assumed office.
Obama’s foolish meddling triggered an endless string of ludicrous delays through meritless motions and trivial appeals. The precept of a speedy trial, guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment and incorporated into military law, was ignored. Any sense of urgency or timeliness was abandoned. Bereaved 9–11 families were all but forgotten and their unimaginable grief discarded.
To his credit, President Trump directed that no plea deals would be accepted. He refused to negotiate with terrorists, even in a military court. The prosecutions moved forward, only to wither when Joe Biden assumed office.
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In addition to being the architect of the worst terrorist attack on American soil, Mohammed admitted that he personally decapitated Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in a gruesome atrocity displayed on video. He also claimed credit for “shoe bomber” Richard Reid’s failed attempt to explode a passenger jet over the Atlantic Ocean.
In his confessions, Mohammed said he yearned for death to become a martyr to the Al Qaeda cause. But pompous cowards often have a change of heart as the gallows draw near.
Mohammad and his 9/11 accomplices have been held for two decades at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. (AP)
Now, in a national disgrace, our government has chosen to appease Mohammed and his fellow terrorists by liberating them from death sentences. This sends an unambiguous message to all terrorists elsewhere that the U.S. is weak. They, too, can slaughter Americans with impunity and without facing the ultimate consequence.
Biden insists he played no role in the decision. Don’t believe it. Ending the prosecutions moves him closer to his campaign promise of shuttering the Gitmo facility. He doesn’t care about justice or the anguish and heartbreak of thousands of families who lost their loved ones and continue to mourn.
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In this tragic way, the victims of 9/11 did die in vain. The injustice represents an indelible stain on their sacred memories. Two thousand, nine hundred and ninety-six people had their lives taken that day by savage acts. Yet, their murderers get to live.
America today is a sadder place.