Accused 9/11 Plotter Wants Death Penalty

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, 4 Other Detainees Accused In Terror Attack Defiant At Arraignment

(CBS/ AP)  Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the reputed mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, told a military judge at his arraignment Thursday that he welcomes the death penalty as a way to martyrdom and ridiculed the proceedings as an "inquisition."

In his first public appearance since his capture five years ago, Mohammed wore thick glasses, a turban and a bushy, gray beard, and he was noticeably thinner - a stark change from the slovenly man with disheveled hair, unshaven face and T-shirt from the widely distributed photograph after his seizure in Pakistan.

He and four other detainees accused of plotting al Qaeda's 2001 attack were at turns cordial and defiant at their arraignment, the first U.S. attempt to try in court those believed to be directly responsible for killing 2,973 people in the bloodiest terrorist attack ever on U.S. soil.

The arraignment is the highest-profile test yet of the military's tribunal system, which faces an uncertain future at Guantanamo. It also could expose harsh interrogation techniques used on the men, who were in CIA custody before being transferred to Guantanamo in 2006.

The government is seeking the death penalty for all five defendants, who sat at separate tables with their defense teams in a high-tech courtroom on this U.S. Navy base.

Mohammed, who has confessed to the 9/11 attack, the beheading of American journalist Daniel Pearl and a chilling string of other terrorist plots, was careful not to interrupt Judge Ralph Kohlmann. He lost his composure only after the Marine colonel ordered several defense attorneys to keep quiet.

"It's an inquisition. It's not a trial," Mohammed said in broken English, his voice rising. "After torturing they transfer us to inquisition-land in Guantanamo."

Mohammed openly made hand signals and seemed to be directing his co-defendants who sat single file behind him, reports CBS News correspondent Bob Orr.

The former No. 3 al Qaeda leader explained he believes only in religious "Sharia" law and railed against President Bush for waging a "crusade war." The judge, wearing a crewcut and black robes, warned Mohammed that he faces execution if convicted of organizing the attacks on America. But Mohammed said he welcomed the death penalty.

"Yes, this is what I wish, to be a martyr for a long time," Mohammed declared. "I will, God willing, have this, by you."

The five men appeared for the joint arraignment at a high-tech courtroom set up on an abandoned airfield on this U.S. Navy base. The five defendants, who were dressed in white, had no handcuffs and sat at separate tables with their defense teams.

Defendant Ramzi Binalshibh, the alleged main intermediary between the 19 hijackers and al Qaeda leaders, had his ankles chained to the floor.

The military is trying to minimize the chance that classified information that would endanger Americans will come out, including delaying closed-circuit video of the proceedings by 20 seconds.

A sound feed to journalists from the courtroom was turned off at one point, and a soldier said it was because a detainee was discussing a medication he had been given, which was a privacy issue. But his defense attorney, Navy Cmdr. Suzanne Lachelier, told The Associated Press later that the prisoner had been discussing his five years as a prisoner of the U.S.

The arraignment indicated that hatred for the United States among some of the defendants remains at a boil.

Binalshibh said he wanted to be a hijacker and be killed on 9/11, reports CBS News producer Rob Hendin.

When asked if he understood that if convicted, the penalty sought by the U.S. government could include a death sentence, Ramzi responded in Arabic: "I've been seeking martyrdom for five years. I tried for 9/11 to get a visa, but could not. I tried to get a visa. If this martyrdom happens today, so be it.. God is great, God is great, God is great."

Calmly propping his glasses on his turban to peer at legal papers, Mohammed grinned at times and insisted that he would not be represented by any attorneys.

Two other detainees quickly followed suit and said they too wanted to represent themselves - Binalshibh and Waleed bin Attash, who allegedly selected and trained some of the hijackers.

"It hardly comes as any surprise that after holding individuals in solitary confinement for five years and subjecting them to torture, these detainees would reject the legal system and offers to represent them," said Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union in New York.

Mohammed is one of three Guantanamo prisoners who the CIA says were subjected to particularly harsh interrogation techniques, including waterboarding - a technique that gives the sensation of drowning and is considered torture by human rights groups.

He is the most valuable al Qaeda official in U.S. custody and the central figure in a trial that will test the Pentagon's military tribunals, which have faced repeated legal setbacks, including a Supreme Court appeal on the rights of Guantanamo detainees that could produce a ruling this month halting the proceedings.

Defense attorneys blasted the military commissions, which were declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2006 before being resurrected in an altered form by Congress and President Bush.

"I think the American people, if they ... understood the ramifications in the long term to our Constitution, to their Constitution, I think they would be ashamed," Lachelier, the attorney for Binalshibh, said outside the heavily guarded courtroom.

She tried to raise another pending Supreme Court decision in the courtroom, on the benchmark when defendants can be allowed to represent themselves, but Kohlmann told her to keep quiet.

"What part of 'no' do you not understand?" the judge said, peering down from the bench. "Sit down."

Lachelier said the defense learned Wednesday that Binalshibh is on "psychotropic medication." The defendant said he was forced to take medication.

Binalshibh's civilian attorney, Thomas Durkin, said the men should be tried in U.S. federal courts.

"We have had many terrorism cases in our federal court system," Durkin said. "I think it is a shame that for whatever reason the Bush administration has put on what we think is a show trial."

The military commissions plan to allow coerced testimony, which has drawn widespread criticism, although evidence obtained by torture is not allowed. Attorneys for Mohammed have said they will challenge evidence obtained during his custody in secret CIA prisons, where the U.S. has said he was waterboarded.

Air Force Brig. Gen. Tom Hartmann, a top tribunal official, told reporters it was up to the judge to determine whether to allow statements obtained during waterboarding as evidence. Hartmann said waterboarding has not officially been classified as torture.

Mohammed said he was tortured after being captured in Pakistan in 2003 but didn't elaborate, indicating he understood he should not discuss it in the courtroom.

"I can't mention about the torturing," said Mohammed, who received an engineering degree from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. "I know this is the red line."

The five defendants spoke with each other in Arabic, appeared to pass notes to each other and at one point looked back and chuckled at reporters watching from behind a courtroom window.

All appeared to be in robust health except for Mustafa Ahmad al-Hawsawi, who allegedly selected and trained some of the 19 hijackers. He looked thin and frail and sat on a pillow on his chair.

The other defendants are Ali Abd al-Aziz Ali, known as Ammar al-Baluchi, a nephew and lieutenant of Mohammed, and Mustafa Ahmad al-Hawsawi, a Saudi, who allegedly helped finance the hijackers.

About 35 journalists watched on closed-circuit TV in a press room inside a converted hangar, while two-dozen others watched through a window from an adjacent room. No photographs were allowed in the courtroom, but a sketch artist was allowed to draw the scene.

[feelfree4u]

Re: "I would like to see these liberals handle these hardcore radicals.. get your rations..and get your guns..there will be an attack soon enough..can wait to pop my first liberal"

Posted by libsluv2spit

Threatening to murder Americans now, are you?

And over the Internet, no less?

[cfin5]

If he wants it, give it to him. Have the 9/11 victims families , if willing, submit their names into a tumble cage. The winner gets to throw the switch. Think of the sale of the tape to the networks being a real "reality show".

[petro49l]

Bin Laden''s girlfriend, Sheik Mohammed is a key conspirator against America. Why allow a desperate felon survive? S.M. advocates for the murders of Arab children, women, police officers, and anyone else to make a bizarre point. Aberrations like Sheik Mohammed should be removed from the Earth.

[petro49l]

Sheik Mohammed is a killer, pervert, and thief. The American Court has every reason to order his execution. Let Bin Laden cry and wail over Sheik Mohammed''s death. He was a key figure behind the 9/11 attack. This country demands justice.

[inventagod2]

NeoCons did 9/11

[juwboy]

honestabe:

I didn''t say Arabs are subhuman. I said FeelFree(k)4U is subhuman.

People like you make me sick. You come here to our country, steal our jobs, but refuse to learn our language.

Go back where came from.

FeelFreek4U is a Moslem who''ll tell you Islam is a religion of peace then give you 100 lashes with a bullwhip if you disagree with him.

[patriot12436]

ajtagg2
He thinks that by dying he will be a martyr. In truth he will meet his maker like everyone else and pay for his sins. The only objection i have to sending him to his maker is with the belief he will be a martyr.

[patriot12436]

gaye5
Just curious, if your not American, what coutry do you live in ?

[feelfree4u]

Re: "Posted by FeelFreee4U at 02:35 PM"

Michael Totten, you sniveling worm.

Has your wife found a man to be with instead of having to bear the embarrassment of being regularly disappointed by you?

I am flattered that you are so jealous of me that you would seek to imitate me.

[feelfreee4u]

Islam is like the Roach motel. You can be born in it, check into it, live around it and perhaps convert to it. But once you check into this roach motel, you can never leave.

Black Flag... Roaches check in but they don''''t check out!

Hotel California.. "You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave".

You''''re either dealt the fate of being born into this filth with no way out, or you choose to convert because you have a Nazi like mentality. There''''s "no way out".

Islam is a disgusting cancer on this Earth.. a pimple on the a*ss of Satan.. A scourge that has scarred humanity for all time. And the worst part? "There''''s no way out".

[honestabe8]

juwboy: do you think arabs are subhuman?

[libh8er]

housed in a womens prison ... lets let some of those lifer women show then what they think about their tude towards women. Posted by cyberus at 07:01 AM : Jun 06, 2008

Excellent! How about this.....perform a s e x change operation on them and stick them in a MEN''S prison for the rest of their lives!

[libh8er]

If you''re looking for someone to throw the switch, I''d like to volunteer!

[gaye5]

Issue Date: www.insightmag.com - June 4-11, 2007, Posted On: 6/4/2007

U.S. agent says Iraqis led him to Saddam''s WMD
By William Hargrave
There were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq when Americans invaded in 2003.

This claim comes from Dave Gaubatz, who served for 12 years as an agent in the U.S. Air Force%u2019s Office of Special Investigations. He says he was "hand-picked" to locate weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Between March and July 2003, he identified several of Saddam Hussein%u2019s WMD sites in the immediate aftermath of the Iraq invasion.

Where were they? Huge caches were located within the city limits of the southern Iraqi city of Nasariyah, and were also discovered in another location 15 to 20 miles south of Nasariyah between two canals and near Um Qasr in the Basra region 284 miles south of Baghdad.

Some of this information has been published by The Spectator (London), The New York Sun, and other U.S. newspapers and Internet news sites. But the mainstream media have chosen not to inform readers and viewers of the credible reports of WMDs discovered in Iraq.

According to these reports, Saddam%u2019s WMDs were apparently smuggled to Syria, Iran and other destinations under the nose of American forces.

[gaye5]

Exporting Saddam''s WMDs
By Ben Johnson
FrontPageMagazine.com | 6/18/2004

The assertion that Saddam Hussein had no Weapons of Mass Destruction prior to last year%u2019s liberation has been rendered absurd %u2013 by United Nations weapons inspectors.

Demetrius Perricos, acting chairman of UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), recently disclosed that his inspectors have been busily tracking shipments of illicit Iraqi WMD components around the world.

The Associated Press announced that UNMOVIC inspectors have found dozens of engines from banned al-Samoud 2 (SA2) missiles, which were shipped out of Iraq as %u201Cscrap metal.%u201D Most recently, UNMOVIC agents found 20 SA-2 engines in Jordan, along with a great deal of other WMD materials. Officials discovered an identical engine in a Rotterdam port in the Netherlands and believe as many as a dozen extra SA-2 missile engines alone have been transported out of Iraq and remain unaccounted for. Inspectors believe at least some of these engines have also reached Turkey and hope to search Turkish ports in the near future.
UNMOVIC estimates as much as 1,000 tons of scrap metal a day are leaving Iraq bound for foreign shores.

Besides the SA-2 engines, inspectors also found Iraqi %u201Cdual use%u201D technology in Jordan, items purportedly employed in civilian affairs that can be used to create or enhance deadly weapons systems. The New York Times noted that etc

[gaye5]

FeelFree4U, have you forgotten the many thousands of Iraqi people who were killed every month by their leader, who were tortured by no other than their leader and his merry men.. and as for no proof in regards to going into Iraq, there has been proof but only one or two papers printed it..




Saddam Sent WMD to Syria, Former General Alleges
By Sherrie Gossett
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
February 02, 2006

(CNSNews.com) - A former Iraqi general alleges that in June 2002 Saddam Hussein transported weapons of mass destruction out of the country to Syria aboard several refitted commercial jets, under the pretense of conducting a humanitarian mission for flood victims. etc etc. look it up for yourself

[gaye5]

BajaJohn1, I hope you are still on, I had to go.. and thanks.. I have wondered if the Americans who come on here can discuss anything intelligently but as I was fortunate enough to meet so many wonderful Americans when we were there they make up for any dill brains that come on here and say nasty things instead of having intelligent intercourse... I love discussions with people, but to try to win an argument by insults only shows how lacking the person is.. so thanks BajaJohn1..

[missingamerica]

Man, the Admnistration surely screwed up the aftermath of 9/11.

Sigh...why would anybody take a situation where we were clearly the harmed party and dilute and obfuscate our moral and legal reasons for seeking revenge with lie after lie after lie, just so that they could invade another nation?

Why would you break your own rules of confinement, prisoner treatment, and interrogation, and thus permanently embed the possibility that any confessions that you obtain were coerced into the international consciousness?

I mean, ***? Just who was controlling these policy decisions?

lollll...just how stupid they were may finally be apparent even to the Iraq War''s architects...PNAC''s website has gone away...

http://www.newamericancentury.org/

[cyberus-2009]

If found to be guilty I think they should get life without parole ... housed in a womens prison ... lets let some of those lifer women show then what they think about their tude towards women.

[feelfree4u]

Even if this guy was actually guilty of involvement with the events of 9/11/01, which is very unlikely, the most that he would be responsible for is the demolition of a few buildings, a few planes, and a few thousand Americans and non.

Meanwhile, our unelected Fuhrer has lied us into war that has cost the lives of even more Americans, has resulted in the pointless murder of more than 1,000,000 Iraqis and Afghans, has spied on us illegally, tortured countless people, and the crimes and treasonous acts just go on, and on, and on...

Where are our priorities?