Key takeaways:
- President Joe Biden has refused to approve some of the conditions that lawyers for the defendants in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks had sought in a possible plea bargain.
- The plea agreement would allow the defendants to plead guilty to the charges against them in exchange for a reduced sentence.
- Biden’s refusal to approve the guarantees has complicated the negotiations and raised questions about whether the negotiations will be successful.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has refused to approve some of the conditions that lawyers for the defendants in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks had sought in a possible plea bargain, a White House National Security Council official said Wednesday.
The terms still under discussion would have the five defendants spared solitary confinement and provided care for the trauma of their torture in CIA custody. However, Biden has refused to approve these guarantees, leaving it to military prosecutors and defense lawyers to try to hash out an agreement on a plea bargain.
The plea agreement would allow the defendants to plead guilty to the charges against them in exchange for a reduced sentence. The five defendants are accused of planning and aiding the 9/11 attacks, which killed nearly 3,000 people.
The plea agreement has been under discussion for months, but Biden’s refusal to approve the guarantees has complicated the negotiations. Defense lawyers have argued that the defendants should not be subjected to solitary confinement or denied access to medical care for the trauma of their torture in CIA custody.
The plea agreement is seen as a way to bring closure to the 9/11 attacks, but Biden’s refusal to approve the guarantees has raised questions about whether the negotiations will be successful. It is unclear how long the negotiations will continue or if the defendants will accept a plea agreement without the guarantees.
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