US may allow Guantanamo detainees to plead guilty

US may allow Guantanamo detainees to plead guiltyWashington - The Obama administration is considering a proposed change in the law governing military commissions for detainees at Guantanamo that would allow them to plead guilty without a full trial, the New York Times reported Saturday.

The change would apply to detainees who face the death penalty, and would spare military prosecutors from having to reveal controversial interrogation techniques, the Times reported, citing unnamed sources.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, last year declared he wants to become a martyr and hopes he receives the death penalty.

The military tribunal at the time also indicated it could allow Mohammed and four other detainees charged with the attacks to reject the court-appointed military defence lawyers and plead guilty.

US President Barack Obama has pledged to close the controversial US Navy prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba by early 2010, but is running into problems that range from questions about the credibility of evidence obtained under duress to the question of which US states and other countries are willing to accept them.

About 245 detainees remain at the facility.(dpa)