http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2009/01/gitmo-prisoner.html

Gitmo prisoner tells judge: 'We are proud of 9/11'

An al-Qaeda leader accused of masterminding the 9/11 attacks told a military judge today that he's not afraid to die at the hands of the U.S. government, The Miami Herald reports.

"We don't care about the capital punishment; we are doing jihad for the cause of God," Khalid Shiek Mohammed said during a hearing at the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Mohammed and other accused terrorists have said they want to plead guilty to terrorism charges. Reuters says "the self-described mastermind of the September 11 hijacked plane plot" took issue with the prosecution's characterization of the deaths that resulted as "murder."

"We are proud of 9/11," Ramzi bin al Shibh, another accused terrorist, said today. The Associated Press says there's some question about bin al Shibh's competence to stand trial.

That may be a moot point, as President-elect Barack Obama has pledged to shut down the controversial prison known as Gitmo.
Posted by Mike Carney at 01:58 PM/ET, January 19, 2009