A US military judge has rejected confessions made by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the man accused of masterminding the September 11, 2001 attacks, ruling that statements he gave to FBI agents were not voluntary and cannot be used at trial.
Judge Lt Col Michael Schrama said Mohammed's 2007 statements were tainted by the "unbroken continuation" of coercive treatment he had endured while in CIA custody, according to the ruling. Mohammed was captured in Pakistan in 2003 and held at CIA secret prisons before being transferred to Guantanamo Bay in 2006.
The ruling is a setback for prosecutors, who have described Mohammed's later interrogations as crucial evidence in the long-delayed case. A military judge had set June 5, 2028, for the trial of Mohammed and three co-defendants, but the latest ruling could lead to further delays if prosecutors appeal.
The Guantanamo detention facility was established by President George W. Bush in 2002 to hold foreign militant suspects captured after the 9/11 attacks. The military commission proceedings have since been repeatedly delayed by legal challenges over evidence, interrogation methods and the defendants' treatment in US custody.