Military prosecutors have decided not to appeal a judge's ruling that threw out a 2007 confession by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, in order to protect the trial date already set for June 2028. The confession, obtained from FBI interviews at Guantanamo Bay, was suppressed by Lt. Col. Michael Schrama, who cited "severe coercion" and noted Mohammed had no access to a lawyer at the time. Prosecutors feared that pursuing an appeal, which could take years, would further delay proceedings that have already been repeatedly postponed, leaving victims' families waiting even longer for a resolution.

The decision, disclosed in a letter sent on the Friday before the 25th anniversary of the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people, means Mohammed's FBI statements cannot be used at his trial. He and three alleged co-conspirators — Walid bin Attash, Mustafa al-Hawsawi and Ammar al-Baluchi — are due to stand trial in June 2028. The case has been mired in years of legal wrangling, including a 2024 plea deal with the Biden administration that would have spared the defendants the death penalty, which was later revoked amid public outcry. Separately, some 9/11 victims' families are pressing the Trump administration to declassify documents concerning Saudi Arabia's alleged role in the attacks.