Judge Excludes Bin Attash's 2007-08 Sept. 11 Confessions in 63-Page Guantánamo Ruling
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Oct 8
Judge Excludes Bin Attash's 2007-08 Sept. 11 Confessions in 63-Page Guantánamo Ruling
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Oct 8
Summary
Walid bin Attash’s 2007 and 2008 statements to federal agents were suppressed as involuntary, stripping prosecutors of the last disputed confession in the Sept. 11 military case.
Lt. Col. Michael Schrama found agents never told bin Attash that statements coerced by the CIA from 2003 to 2006 could not be used against him.
The judge also said FBI interrogators used inducements such as treats in ways that echoed CIA methods, undercutting the government’s long-defended “clean team” approach.
The ruling marks the fifth time a military judge has rejected Guantánamo clean-team confessions, further weakening evidence in a case tied to the 2001 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.
With 9/11 confessions thrown out due to past CIA torture, can prosecutors still secure a conviction without their most critical evidence?
How does a judge justify suppressing a 9/11 suspect's proud boast about the hijackings simply because interrogators offered him treats?
If psychological trauma permanently taints FBI interrogations, will the deeply delayed 2028 Guantanamo death-penalty trial ever actually take place?
9/11 Military Trials Paralyzed: How Suppression of Torture-Derived Evidence Threatens Justice for Nearly 3,000 Victims
Overview
The October 7, 2026 ruling to suppress Walid bin Attash’s confessions marked the collapse of the U.S. government’s 'clean team' strategy, as military judges had already thrown out similar confessions from other 9/11 defendants due to the lingering effects of CIA torture and the lack of proper warnings. With these key statements excluded, the prosecution’s case against the 9/11 conspirators is now fractured, forcing prosecutors to rely on indirect evidence like financial records and recordings. Decades of delays, failed plea deals, and the legacy of torture have left the June 2028 trial date in doubt, highlighting deep flaws in the military commission system.