The answer to where is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged principal planner of the September 11, 2001, attacks, remains in U.S. military custody at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, where he has been held since his transfer there in 2006. As of the latest update, he has still never gone to trial.
A military judge has now scheduled his long-delayed trial for June 5, 2028, but the case remains surrounded by major legal and evidentiary issues. A recent ruling excluding statements Mohammed made to FBI interrogators has further complicated the prosecution’s effort to bring the case to a conclusion.
Where Is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Now?
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is currently detained at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay Naval Station in Cuba. He is being held as part of the military commission proceedings involving four men accused of participating in the September 11 attacks.
The U.S. Office of Military Commissions continues to list the case as an active military commission proceeding. The commission’s current calendar shows a pretrial motions hearing involving Mohammed and his co-defendants scheduled for September 28 through October 2, 2026, at Guantanamo Bay.
That means Mohammed is not currently serving a criminal sentence following a completed trial. Instead, he remains a detainee awaiting proceedings in a military commission.
Why Is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed at Guantanamo Bay?
Mohammed was captured in Pakistan in March 2003. Following his capture, he was held for several years in secret CIA detention before being transferred to Guantanamo Bay in September 2006.
The U.S. government accuses him of being the principal architect of the September 11 plot. He was eventually charged before a military commission along with Walid bin Attash, Ramzi bin al-Shibh, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, also known as Ammar al-Baluchi, and Mustafa al-Hawsawi.
The charges relate to the planning and execution of the 2001 attacks, which killed nearly 3,000 people.
What Happened to Khalid Sheikh Mohammed After His Capture?
Mohammed’s detention history is central to why his prosecution has taken so long.
After his capture in 2003, he was held in CIA custody outside the normal U.S. military detention system. During that period, he was subjected to harsh interrogation methods, including waterboarding.
The treatment became a major issue in the subsequent military commission proceedings because prosecutors sought to use statements Mohammed made after his transfer into U.S. custody.
The defense has argued that statements obtained after torture cannot be considered voluntary and therefore should not be admitted as evidence.
These disputes have contributed significantly to the extraordinary length of the case.
Why Has Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Never Been Put on Trial?
The prosecution has been delayed by several overlapping problems.
One of the biggest issues has been whether evidence and statements obtained after Mohammed’s CIA detention can be used against him. The defense has repeatedly challenged evidence on the grounds that it was affected by torture and coercive interrogation.
There have also been disputes over the military commission system itself, changes in prosecution strategy, appeals and disagreements about the appropriate punishment.
A previous effort to prosecute Mohammed and other defendants in federal court in New York was abandoned. In 2011, the Justice Department formally referred the five accused 9/11 plotters to military commissions after the federal-court prosecution plan could not proceed.
The result has been an unusually lengthy pretrial process.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Trial Date: June 2028
The most significant recent development is that a military judge has scheduled the trial to begin on June 5, 2028.
Air Force Lt. Col. Michael Schrama rejected the prosecution’s request for an earlier January 2027 start date and instead gave the defense and prosecution additional time to resolve outstanding pretrial matters.
The planned proceedings are expected to take place before a military commission at Guantanamo Bay.
However, the scheduled date does not necessarily guarantee that the trial will actually begin on that day. The case has experienced years of delays, and unresolved appeals and evidentiary disputes could potentially affect the schedule.
The Associated Press reported on September 11, 2026, that legal experts remain skeptical that the trial will ultimately take place as currently scheduled.
What Is the Latest Evidence Ruling in the Case?
A major development came in late August 2026 when the military judge excluded statements Mohammed made during FBI questioning in Guantanamo Bay in January 2007.
The judge concluded that the statements were not voluntary because of the effects of his earlier coercive treatment.
CBS News reported that the ruling excluded the statements Mohammed gave to FBI agents during a four-day interrogation.
The Office of Military Commissions also confirms that a ruling dated August 28, 2026, granted Mohammed’s motion to suppress statements made to law-enforcement interviewers at Guantanamo Bay in 2007.
This ruling is important because the government has spent years trying to determine what evidence can legally be presented against Mohammed.
Why Does the Confession Ruling Matter?
The ruling illustrates one of the central difficulties in the 9/11 case.
The government has evidence from multiple sources, but statements obtained after years of coercive detention face serious legal challenges. Prosecutors must demonstrate that evidence presented to the military commission is legally admissible.
The exclusion of Mohammed’s FBI statements therefore represents another obstacle for prosecutors.
It does not mean that the entire case has been dismissed. It means that particular statements cannot be used in the manner the prosecution sought.
The government still has other evidence and allegations against Mohammed, while the defense continues to challenge the government’s case.
What Happened to Khalid Sheikh Mohammed’s Plea Deal?
Another major chapter in the case involved a proposed plea agreement.
In 2024, Mohammed and two co-defendants agreed to plead guilty under terms that would have removed the possibility of the death penalty and resulted in life imprisonment. The proposed agreements generated intense debate among 9/11 victims’ families, government officials and politicians.
Then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin moved to withdraw the agreements.
The dispute eventually reached the federal appeals courts. In July 2025, a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that Austin had the authority to revoke the agreements.
That decision effectively returned the case toward a contested trial rather than allowing the defendants to resolve the charges through the proposed guilty pleas.
Could Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Still Receive the Death Penalty?
Yes. The collapse of the plea agreement reopened the possibility of capital punishment if prosecutors ultimately obtain a conviction and the applicable military commission proceedings permit a death sentence.
The proposed plea agreement would have removed that possibility and resulted in life imprisonment.
Because the plea deal was rejected and the prosecution is now proceeding toward a military commission trial, the death penalty remains an issue in the case.
However, Mohammed has not been convicted. Any discussion of punishment remains conditional on future proceedings and the outcome of the case.
Who Else Is Accused Alongside Khalid Sheikh Mohammed?
Mohammed’s military commission case involves three other defendants.
They are:
- Walid bin Attash
- Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, also known as Ammar al-Baluchi
- Mustafa al-Hawsawi
The four men are scheduled to face proceedings connected to the September 11 attacks.
Ramzi bin al-Shibh was originally among the defendants, but his case has proceeded separately because of questions surrounding his mental health and competency.
The Justice Department’s historical records identify Mohammed and the other defendants as being accused of conspiring in connection with the September 11 attacks.
When Is the Next Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Hearing?
According to the current Office of Military Commissions calendar, a motions hearing in United States v. Khalid Shaikh Mohammad et al. is scheduled for September 28 through October 2, 2026.
The hearing is scheduled to take place at the Expeditionary Legal Complex at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay.
These proceedings are part of the extensive pretrial process that must be completed before a trial can begin.
Why Has the Case Taken More Than 20 Years?
The extraordinary delay has several causes rather than one single explanation.
Mohammed was captured in 2003, but the prosecution has been complicated by his years in CIA custody, allegations of torture, questions surrounding evidence, changes in the government’s prosecution strategy, military commission procedures and years of litigation.
The government originally considered prosecuting the defendants in federal court. That plan was abandoned, and the cases were returned to the military commission system.
The resulting case has continued through years of pretrial hearings without reaching a final verdict.
The recent trial scheduling order is therefore significant, but it does not eliminate the legal challenges that remain.
Could Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Ever Be Convicted?
It is too early to know.
The prosecution still intends to pursue the charges, and the military commission has established a future trial date. But the defense continues to challenge evidence and legal procedures.
The exclusion of the 2007 FBI statements demonstrates that important evidence remains contested.
The Associated Press reported this week that some legal experts believe the case could continue to face significant obstacles and may not ultimately reach a completed trial.
Therefore, the most accurate description of Mohammed’s current status is that he remains a pretrial detainee at Guantanamo Bay, not a convicted 9/11 defendant.
Where Is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Compared With Other 9/11 Defendants?
Mohammed’s situation is different from that of Zacarias Moussaoui.
Moussaoui was prosecuted in federal court and convicted in 2006. He received a life sentence and remains incarcerated in the United States.
Mohammed, by contrast, has never completed a trial. His case remains within the military commission system at Guantanamo Bay.
This distinction is important when discussing the question of where Mohammed is today. He is not in a U.S. federal prison serving a sentence following conviction. He remains detained at Guantanamo while his military commission case continues.
What Happens Next for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed?
The immediate focus is on additional pretrial litigation.
The next major scheduled proceedings are the September 28-October 2, 2026, motions hearings at Guantanamo Bay. The defense and prosecution are expected to continue addressing evidentiary and procedural issues before the planned 2028 trial.
The planned trial is currently scheduled to begin June 5, 2028.
But the case’s history means that the schedule should be viewed as a planned milestone rather than an absolute guarantee. Appeals, evidentiary rulings and other legal disputes could still affect the timeline.
The Bottom Line
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is currently detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where he has been held since 2006. He remains accused, rather than convicted, of being the principal planner of the September 11 attacks.
The latest update is that a military judge has scheduled his trial for June 5, 2028, while the next pretrial motions hearing is scheduled for late September 2026. A recent ruling excluding his 2007 FBI statements has added another significant challenge for prosecutors.
After more than two decades of detention and legal proceedings, the central question is no longer simply where Mohammed is being held. It is whether the long-running military commission case can overcome its remaining legal barriers and finally reach a completed trial.
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