9/11 mastermind confessions — A US military judge has ruled that confessions made by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind behind the September 11, 2001 attacks, to FBI agents cannot be used as evidence in his upcoming trial, according to a report by The New York Times. The decision comes as the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks approaches, with the trial for Mohammed and three other accused plotters now scheduled for June 5, 2028, at the US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Mohammed, who was captured in Pakistan in 2003 and later transferred to Guantanamo in 2006, has long been considered a top lieutenant to Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. His case has been marked by years of legal disputes over the admissibility of statements obtained during and after his detention by US authorities.

Judge Cites Coercion and Rights Violations

Lt. Col. Michael Schrama, the military judge presiding over the case, concluded that Mohammed’s 2007 interrogations at Guantanamo were tainted by prior CIA treatment and coercion. Schrama wrote that the prosecution failed to prove that Mohammed’s statements to the FBI were given voluntarily, citing an “unbroken continuation of the CIA’s psychological conditioning and severe coercion.” The judge also noted that FBI agents did not inform Mohammed of his right to remain silent or to consult a lawyer.

Prosecutors had already excluded statements made by Mohammed during his initial CIA detention, when he was subjected to harsh interrogation methods such as waterboarding. The latest ruling extends the exclusion to statements made after his transfer to Guantanamo, further complicating the prosecution’s case.

Much of the legal debate in the proceedings against the 9/11 defendants has centered on whether a fair trial is possible after the use of torture and other coercive methods. The ruling, which has not yet been released to the public, was confirmed by several lawyers familiar with its contents. A spokesperson for the US military court did not immediately comment on the decision.