<

Moussaoui Drops Guilty Plea
Thursday, July 25, 2002
(21:55 GMT) (22:55 UK)
The BBC

Moussaoui claims he had prior knowledge of the attacks.
Image Credit: The Associated Press.

Last week, as he tried to enter a guilty plea, Mr. Moussaoui pledged allegiance to Osama Bin Laden and his al-Qaeda network.

After a confusing hearing in a US courtroom, the only man charged over the 11 September terror attacks has withdrawn a guilty plea -- shortly after making it.

The retraction came after US District Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that Zacarias Moussaoui was mentally fit to enter a plea, and he proceeded to plead guilty to four of the six conspiracy charges he faces -- the ones that carry the death penalty.

But then Judge Brinkema questioned Mr. Moussaoui and asserted that he did not want to admit his guilt.

After a recess, the defendant withdrew his plea, quoting William Shakespeare's play Hamlet and calling upon his own interpretation of the Islamic faith.

"Hamlet said: 'To be or not to be, that is the question.' I say: To plead guilty or not to plead guilty, that is the question," he told the court.

"As a Muslim, I cannot endorse anything with the condition of death," he added.

The dramatic turn of events now means that French citizen Mr. Moussaoui is likely to face a full trial, the BBC's Justin Webb reports from outside the courtoom in Alexandria, Virginia.

* First pleas
* Quick change
* Going it alone
(More: BBC Online News Source)
2002 © The British Broadcasting Corporation.

Dan