9/11 mastermind's trial finally set to start in 2028

After more than two decades in limbo, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three other men held at Guantánamo Bay will face trial starting June 5, 2028. A military judge signed off on the date Wednesday, moving forward a case that's been stuck in legal quicksand since the men were first detained.

Mohammed is accused of orchestrating the September 11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people and destroyed the Twin Towers. He's been locked up without trial for years, along with the three others facing charges connected to the plot. The timing is awkward—the ruling dropped just weeks before the 25th anniversary of the attacks themselves.

What's taken so long? Pre-trial disputes over CIA interrogation methods have basically paralyzed the case. Lawyers and judges have spent years arguing over what evidence is admissible, what was obtained through torture, and what should stay sealed. It's the kind of procedural mess that makes headlines disappear but doesn't actually resolve anything.

Judge Lt Col Michael Schrama's order sets a concrete date, but anyone who's followed military tribunal cases knows that dates slip. Still, having a target on the calendar is something. The trials won't happen in a regular courthouse—they'll go down at Guantánamo itself, the same facility where these men have been held.

The case has become emblematic of post-9/11 detention policies, the debate over enhanced interrogation, and the struggle to balance national security with due process. For families of victims, it represents a long-delayed reckoning. For civil liberties advocates, it's a symbol of the system's dysfunction.

June 2028 is still nearly two years away. Plenty of time for more legal battles to surface.