Comer opens inquiry into 9/11 plea deals, questions ‘lack of transparency’

The House Oversight Committee asked President Joe Biden on Friday to provide Congress with information about his administration’s plea deal negotiations with three 9/11 suspects.

Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) said in a letter to Biden that he wanted to understand what role his administration had in the negotiations and what factors led to the decision to allow the suspects, who are charged with murdering nearly 3,000 people, to avert the death penalty.

Comer’s letter comes two days after the Department of Defense announced that it reached pre-trial agreements with Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin ‘Attash, and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi. The three suspects, who were first charged in 2008 in connection with the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, are being held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and have never gone to trial.

The details of the plea deals have not been disclosed, and Comer also raised questions about what he described as the “complete lack of transparency” regarding them.

“The specific terms of the pre-trial agreements remain undisclosed to the public or families of the victims,” Comer wrote. “You are allowing these terrorists to avoid the death penalty, signaling to our enemies that the United States is reluctant to pursue full justice against those who attack our nation.”

This story is developing.