Accused 9/11 plotters to stand trial in 2028

Rebecca Falconer

Man with dark, messy hair and a mustache wearing a white tank top, looking at the camera with a neutral expression, in front of a beige, stained wall. — Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, alleged organizer of the 9/11 attacks, shortly after his capture in Pakistan in 2003. Photo: HO/AFP via Getty Images

A military judge on Wednesday set a June 2028 trial date for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three other men accused of plotting the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The big picture: Air Force Lt. Col. Michael Schrama, a military commissions judge, set the tentative trial date for June 5, 2028 — some 20 years after Mohammed and his co-defendants were first arraigned in 2008 and 27 years after the 9/11 attacks.

Plea agreements that would have spared Mohammed and two co-defendants the death penalty were thrown out by a divided federal appeals court in July 2025. The Supreme Court is considering whether to review that decision.

Zoom in: Mohammed is due to stand trial alongside Walid bin Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi.

Military prosecutors had wanted a January 2027 trial, but Schrama determined that wasn't realistic.

Flashback: Military judge sets 2021 trial date for alleged 9/11 plotters

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Accused 9/11 plotters to stand trial in 2028

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