US seeks death penalty for six 9-11 suspects

Feb 11, 2008, 17:54 GMT

A handout photo obtained 01 March 2003, shows Al-Qaeda operative Khalid Sheikh Mohammed shortly after his capture, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks has allegedly confessed to his role in them, and 29 other terror plots around the world. EPA/HANDOUT

Washington - The US military announced Monday that it will seek the death penalty against six suspects charged with playing key roles in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Brigadier General Thomas Hartmann said charges will be filed against the admitted mastermind of the attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, as well as Mohammed al-Qahtani who is believed to have been the '20th hijacker,' and Ramzi bin al-Shibh, the alleged point of contact between the hijackers and al-Qaeda's leadership.

The defendants, held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, will face war crimes and other charges at the military commissions ordered by President George W Bush, Hartmann, the legal advisor for the commissions, said.

The other three defendants are Ali Abd al-Aziz Ali, Mohammed's nephew and deputy, Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi, and Walid bin Attash, who trained some of the hijackers, Hartmann said. There are a total of 169 charges against the six men, and the Pentagon wants them all to be tried together.

The six prisoners have been charged with conspiracy, violating the law of war by committing murder, attacking civilians and civilian structures, causing serious bodily injury, destruction of property, terrorism and material support for terrorism, Hartmann said.

Four of them - Mohammed, bin Attash, al-Shibh and Ali - will also be charged with hijacking.

The charges must be reviewed and approved by a military official, Susan Crawford, a former military appeals court judge. She can then decide whether the death penalty is warranted under the charges, Hartmann said.

The death penalty cases are likely to intensify criticism of the military commissions, which have been challenged in court. Civil rights advocates have raised questions about the fairness of the tribunals.

Hartmann said each defendant will be entitled to military defence lawyers and could also hire civilian attorneys. He said the defendants are receiving the same rights that would be granted to US military personnel charged with crimes.

'There will be no secret trials. We will make every effort to make everything open.' he said.

Hartmann said, however, that some evidence could be classified and must remain secret to protect US national security. He said presiding judges will determine what type of evidence can be used, including information obtained through harsh interrogation methods like waterboarding.

CIA Director Michael Hayden said last week the agency used waterboarding, a method that simulates drowning, while interrogating Mohammed and two other detainees.

Hartmann said the defendants will have the right to review all of the evidence against them and call witnesses in their defence during the trials. He did not say how long the trials will last, although some analysts believe the process could take years because the charges carry the death penalty, which could be challenged in some civilian courts.

There is also not a facility at Guantanamo Bay for carrying out executions, and it remained unclear how the Pentagon would proceed to hand out a death sentence. The military has not executed anyone since 1961.

If Judge Crawford approves the charges, the detainees will enter pleas within 30 days, Hartmann said. Within another 90 days, the military panel will begin hearing motions.

Nearly 3,000 people died on September 11, 2001, when two hijacked planes slammed into the World Trade Centre's twin towers, one into the Pentagon and the fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.