Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 terror attacks of 2001, has agreed to a plea deal that would see him avoid the death penalty in lieu of a life sentence, according to reports citing US prosecutors. Sheikh, usually called KSM, reached the plea deal along with two other convicts, Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, while awaiting trial for the terror strikes that killed nearly 3,000 Americans on September 11, 2001&nbsp;in New York, the Pentagon and in Pennsylvania. 
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<h2>Who is Khalid Shaikh Mohammed?</h2>

Khalid Shaikh Mohammed is a Kuwaiti mechanical engineer of Pakistani origin and self-avowed jihadist, who lived and worked in a host of countries including Qatar, the US, the Philippines, Afghanistan and Sudan.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/911-mastermind-and-accomplices-reach-plea-agreement-746070">9/11 mastermind and accomplices reach plea agreement</a>

He was&nbsp;an aide of slain al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and at one point headed the propaganda wing of the terror organisation.

<h2>Khaled Shaikh Mohammad's involvement in 9/11 terror attacks</h2>

Sheikh, also known as KSM,&nbsp;developed&nbsp;the idea of the 9/11 attacks, and was involved in its planning as well as training of several terrorists to carry it out. The plan was to ram hijacked&nbsp;planes into some of the most iconic and symbolic buildings of America: The World Trade Center, the Pentagon and possibly the White House or US Congress. Two planes hit the twin towers of&nbsp;World Trade Center on the morning rush hour of September 11, 2001. The third plane aimed for Pentagon but went down near the periphery of the defence department headquaters. A fourth plane crashed on a field in Pennsylvania after passengers bravely fought the hijackers.

<h2>Khalid Sheikh Mohammad arrest, detention, torture&nbsp;and 'confession' </h2>

Soon after the attack, a series of arrests followed, and Shaikh was one of&nbsp; those taken into custody from Pakistan's Rawalpindi, in a joint US-Pakistan intelligence operation. Many of the terror suspects arrested were eventually sent to Guantanamo Bay, a notorious US prison and detention camp off the Cuba coast, after being transferred to so-called 'rendition' or 'black' sites, where their years-long torture overshadowed the magnitude of the crimes they had perpetrated.

KSM, a portly man in his late 30s or early 40s at the time allegedly confessed to masterminding the attack. The 9/11 Commission Report&nbsp;named him the "the principal architect of the 9/11 attacks".&nbsp;

But the confessions, allegedly made in March 2007 onwards, were done under physical torture and tough interrogations that included more than 180 rounds of so-called 'waterboarding' in KSM's case. So it is not completely credible that he also confessed to other terror plots like the Richard Reid shoe bombing, the 2002 Bali bombings in Indonesia as well as a previous bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993. He also confessed to the beheading of US Wall Streets Journal reporter&nbsp;Daniel Pearl.

He was also known to be involved in other terror plots, most notably the Bojinka plot in the Philippines to destroy several airlines, which eventually became his blueprint for the 9/11 attacks.

<h2>Khalid Sheikh Mohammad: A long-term jihadist</h2>

Sheikh was born on 14 April 1965&nbsp;in Pakistan. His family subsequently moved to Kuwait. He was radicalised as a teenager after listening to speeches of some clerics who called for jihad.&nbsp; He joined the Muslim Brotherhood while in his youth.&nbsp;

He got a mechaniacl engineering degree in&nbsp;the US and went on to work in Qatar.

According to reports, he had a negative experience as an immigrant student in the US. He was jailed in the US once for not paying bills. He reportedly felt that&nbsp;the US was was "a debauched and racist" country.

At the height of Taliban resistance to the Soviet occupation of Afganistan in the 1980s, Sheikh&nbsp;joined the resistance forces. KSM used to travel to key sites of jihadist groups across the world, and met Osama bin Laden in Sudan during one such trip. He later became one of his close associates. Initially he refused to join al Qaeda, but eventually became&nbsp;the head of its propaganda wing.

He drew detailed plans on how the 9/11 plot will unfold and did reconnaissance missions to the target sites. He presented the plan to&nbsp;Osama bin Laden some time in 1996, and then helped train and direct some of the hijackers.

<h2>Khalid Sheikh Mohammad: The Pakistan connection</h2>

Sheikh hails from Balochistan in Pakistan, where his father,&nbsp;Shaikh Muhammad Ali Dustin al-Baluchi, was a Deobandi imam.

It was Sheikh's presence among the plotters that pointed to Pakistan's involvement in the terror plot. Eventually, Osama bin Laden was found living in a safe house in Abbottabad, just few kilometres away from the military garrisons in Pakistani capital Islamabad. He was killed by US Marines in a night operation in May 2011. 
 
Terrorism also runs in the family of KSM. His nephew Ramzi Yousef is a convicted terrorist for involvement in&nbsp;the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Another nephew,&nbsp;Ammar Al Baluchi, was involved in several terror plots.

 
(With inputs from agencies)

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 terror attacks of 2001, has agreed to a plea deal that would see him avoid the death penalty in lieu of a life sentence, according to reports citing US prosecutors.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 terror attacks of 2001, has agreed to a plea deal that would see him avoid the death penalty in lieu of a life sentence, according to reports citing US prosecutors. Sheikh, usually called KSM, reached the plea deal along with two other convicts, Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, while awaiting trial for the terror strikes that killed nearly 3,000 Americans on September 11, 2001 in New York, the Pentagon and in Pennsylvania. Who is Khalid Shaikh Mohammed? Khalid Shaikh Mohammed is a Kuwaiti mechanical engineer of Pakistani origin and self-avowed jihadist, who lived and worked in a host of countries including Qatar, the US, the Philippines, Afghanistan and Sudan. Also read: 9/11 mastermind and accomplices reach plea agreement He was an aide of slain al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and at one point headed the propaganda wing of the terror organisation. Khaled Shaikh Mohammad's involvement in 9/11 terror attacks Sheikh, also known as KSM, developed the idea of the 9/11 attacks, and was involved in its planning as well as training of several terrorists to carry it out. The plan was to ram hijacked planes into some of the most iconic and symbolic buildings of America: The World Trade Center, the Pentagon and possibly the White House or US Congress. Two planes hit the twin towers of World Trade Center on the morning rush hour of September 11, 2001. The third plane aimed for Pentagon but went down near the periphery of the defence department headquaters. A fourth plane crashed on a field in Pennsylvania after passengers bravely fought the hijackers. Khalid Sheikh Mohammad arrest, detention, torture and 'confession' Soon after the attack, a series of arrests followed, and Shaikh was one of those taken into custody from Pakistan's Rawalpindi, in a joint US-Pakistan intelligence operation. Many of the terror suspects arrested were eventually sent to Guantanamo Bay, a notorious US prison and detention camp off the Cuba coast, after being transferred to so-called 'rendition' or 'black' sites, where their years-long torture overshadowed the magnitude of the crimes they had perpetrated. KSM, a portly man in his late 30s or early 40s at the time allegedly confessed to masterminding the attack. The 9/11 Commission Report named him the "the principal architect of the 9/11 attacks". But the confessions, allegedly made in March 2007 onwards, were done under physical torture and tough interrogations that included more than 180 rounds of so-called 'waterboarding' in KSM's case. So it is not completely credible that he also confessed to other terror plots like the Richard Reid shoe bombing, the 2002 Bali bombings in Indonesia as well as a previous bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993. He also confessed to the beheading of US Wall Streets Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. He was also known to be involved in other terror plots, most notably the Bojinka plot in the Philippines to destroy several airlines, which eventually became his blueprint for the 9/11 attacks. Khalid Sheikh Mohammad: A long-term jihadist Sheikh was born on 14 April 1965 in Pakistan. His family subsequently moved to Kuwait. He was radicalised as a teenager after listening to speeches of some clerics who called for jihad. He joined the Muslim Brotherhood while in his youth. He got a mechaniacl engineering degree in the US and went on to work in Qatar. According to reports, he had a negative experience as an immigrant student in the US. He was jailed in the US once for not paying bills. He reportedly felt that the US was was "a debauched and racist" country. At the height of Taliban resistance to the Soviet occupation of Afganistan in the 1980s, Sheikh joined the resistance forces. KSM used to travel to key sites of jihadist groups across the world, and met Osama bin Laden in Sudan during one such trip. He later became one of his close associates. Initially he refused to join al Qaeda, but eventually became the head of its propaganda wing. He drew detailed plans on how the 9/11 plot will unfold and did reconnaissance missions to the target sites. He presented the plan to Osama bin Laden some time in 1996, and then helped train and direct some of the hijackers. Khalid Sheikh Mohammad: The Pakistan connection Sheikh hails from Balochistan in Pakistan, where his father, Shaikh Muhammad Ali Dustin al-Baluchi, was a Deobandi imam. It was Sheikh's presence among the plotters that pointed to Pakistan's involvement in the terror plot. Eventually, Osama bin Laden was found living in a safe house in Abbottabad, just few kilometres away from the military garrisons in Pakistani capital Islamabad. He was killed by US Marines in a night operation in May 2011. Terrorism also runs in the family of KSM. His nephew Ramzi Yousef is a convicted terrorist for involvement in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Another nephew, Ammar Al Baluchi, was involved in several terror plots. (With inputs from agencies)

Who is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of 9/11 attacks who'll avoid death penalty?

The legend of Afghanistan's 'Lion of Panjshir' Ahmad Shah Massoud

A US congressional committee on Wednesday unanimously approved legislation to extend the fund compensating first responders to the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Centre for the next 70 years, a move that would avoid steep benefit reductions over a lack of money.

The House Judiciary Committee acted one day after television personality and comedian Jon Stewart castigated lawmakers at a hearing for their slow response to helping New York City firefighters, police officers and other emergency personnel who rushed to the scene of the attacks that left two of Manhattan`s most well-known skyscrapers in rubble.

The fund also helps construction workers and victims of the attack.

"Your indifference costs these men and women their most valuable commodity - time," Stewart said to a hearing room packed with lawmakers and first-responders, including those now suffering from cancer, respiratory problems and other serious health issues as a result of inhaling contaminated air nearly 18 years ago.

Before Wednesday`s vote, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, whose constituents live in New York City, said that despite federal officials` statements that the air was safe in the aftermath of the attack, "more than 95,000 responders and survivors are sick."&nbsp;

The bill, which next goes to the full House for debate, would extend the victims` compensation fund to 2090, putting it on the same terms as a health program for World Trade Centre victims. It also would reverse any benefit cuts due to insufficient funds.&nbsp;

Also on Wednesday, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York pleaded for fast passage in that chamber.

On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was asked by a reporter whether he would advance the legislation.

"I hadn`t looked at that lately. I`ll have to. We`ve always dealt with that in a compassionate way and I assume we will again," McConnell said. 
In the past, some lawmakers have complained about the cost of helping 9-11 victims at a time of severe U.S. budget deficits.&nbsp;

"It`s shameful. There’s no other word for it. Shameful, that our brave first responders have had to suffer the indignity of delay after delay after delay," Schumer said in a speech to the Senate.

A US congressional committee on Wednesday unanimously approved legislation to extend the fund compensating first responders to the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Centre for the next 70 years, a move that would avoid steep benefit reductions over a lack of money.

A US congressional committee on Wednesday unanimously approved legislation to extend the fund compensating first responders to the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Centre for the next 70 years, a move that would avoid steep benefit reductions over a lack of money. The House Judiciary Committee acted one day after television personality and comedian Jon Stewart castigated lawmakers at a hearing for their slow response to helping New York City firefighters, police officers and other emergency personnel who rushed to the scene of the attacks that left two of Manhattan`s most well-known skyscrapers in rubble. The fund also helps construction workers and victims of the attack. "Your indifference costs these men and women their most valuable commodity - time," Stewart said to a hearing room packed with lawmakers and first-responders, including those now suffering from cancer, respiratory problems and other serious health issues as a result of inhaling contaminated air nearly 18 years ago. Before Wednesday`s vote, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, whose constituents live in New York City, said that despite federal officials` statements that the air was safe in the aftermath of the attack, "more than 95,000 responders and survivors are sick." The bill, which next goes to the full House for debate, would extend the victims` compensation fund to 2090, putting it on the same terms as a health program for World Trade Centre victims. It also would reverse any benefit cuts due to insufficient funds. Also on Wednesday, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York pleaded for fast passage in that chamber. On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was asked by a reporter whether he would advance the legislation. "I hadn`t looked at that lately. I`ll have to. We`ve always dealt with that in a compassionate way and I assume we will again," McConnell said. In the past, some lawmakers have complained about the cost of helping 9-11 victims at a time of severe U.S. budget deficits. "It`s shameful. There’s no other word for it. Shameful, that our brave first responders have had to suffer the indignity of delay after delay after delay," Schumer said in a speech to the Senate.

US House panel approves permanent September 11 victims' compensation

The White House said on Monday that US &nbsp;President Barack Obama would veto the bill allowing victims of the 9/11 attacks and their families to sue the Saudi government for damages.&nbsp; 
 
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest confirmed that the President does intend to veto the legislation. 
 
The bill will allow Americans to file lawsuits against any foreign governments suspected of backing terrorism against America.&nbsp; 
 
The legislation is strongly opposed by Saudi Arabia which is home to 15 of the 19 hijackers in the 9/11 terror attacks. 
 
He said the bill could be used as an excuse to haul US diplomats or US service members or even US companies into courts all around the world. 
 
&quot;You could have judges at different levels in different courtrooms, reaching different conclusions about the same country. That is not an effective, forceful way for us to respond to terrorism,&quot; Earnest said. 
 
Earnest added that the bill endangers the concept of sovereign immunity that protects the United States as much as any other country in the world.&nbsp; 
 
Earnest anticipated a wider international reaction to the bill. He said, &quot;So the President feels quite strongly about this. Our concern is not limited to the impact it could have on a relationship with one country, but rather it could have an impact on our relationship with every country around the world in a way that has negative consequences for the US, for our national security, and for our men and women in uniform.&quot; 
 
The Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act was passed in the House of Representatives by a voice vote on Friday,&nbsp; 
 
It had earlier found unanimous approval in the Senate in May. The Senate sent the bill for President&#39;s approval on Monday night, giving him a 10-day window to veto the decision.&nbsp; 
 
But even if Obama vetos the bill, Congressional aides said the measure appeared to have enough support to override his decision.&nbsp; 
 
A two-thirds majority in both the Senate and House is required for lawmakers to override an Obama veto for the first time since he took office in January 2009. 
 
Under the Constitution, Obama could also opt for a &quot;pocket veto,&quot; in which the president can defeat a bill just by holding onto it until Congress is out of session. 
 
(WION with inputs from agencies) 
&nbsp;

The White House said the bill is a forceful way to respond to terrorism and could have a far-reaching impact

The White House said on Monday that US President Barack Obama would veto the bill allowing victims of the 9/11 attacks and their families to sue the Saudi government for damages. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest confirmed that the President does intend to veto the legislation. The bill will allow Americans to file lawsuits against any foreign governments suspected of backing terrorism against America. The legislation is strongly opposed by Saudi Arabia which is home to 15 of the 19 hijackers in the 9/11 terror attacks. He said the bill could be used as an excuse to haul US diplomats or US service members or even US companies into courts all around the world. "You could have judges at different levels in different courtrooms, reaching different conclusions about the same country. That is not an effective, forceful way for us to respond to terrorism," Earnest said. Earnest added that the bill endangers the concept of sovereign immunity that protects the United States as much as any other country in the world. Earnest anticipated a wider international reaction to the bill. He said, "So the President feels quite strongly about this. Our concern is not limited to the impact it could have on a relationship with one country, but rather it could have an impact on our relationship with every country around the world in a way that has negative consequences for the US, for our national security, and for our men and women in uniform." The Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act was passed in the House of Representatives by a voice vote on Friday, It had earlier found unanimous approval in the Senate in May. The Senate sent the bill for President's approval on Monday night, giving him a 10-day window to veto the decision. But even if Obama vetos the bill, Congressional aides said the measure appeared to have enough support to override his decision. A two-thirds majority in both the Senate and House is required for lawmakers to override an Obama veto for the first time since he took office in January 2009. Under the Constitution, Obama could also opt for a "pocket veto," in which the president can defeat a bill just by holding onto it until Congress is out of session. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Obama will veto bill allowing 9/11 families to sue Saudi Arabia: White House