Halt sought to US military trial for 9/11 plotter

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lawyers for accused September 11 plotter Ramzi Binalshibh have asked a U.S. appeals court to halt his military trial, arguing it is unconstitutional and raising a potential problem for the Obama administration's plan to try several terrorism suspects.

Describing the military commissions as a "political show trial," Binalshibh's lawyers argued to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that the trials have been "corrupted by illegitimate political considerations at every step."

President Barack Obama is trying to close the controversial prison at Guantanamo Bay, where Binalshibh is being held, with plans to try some of the terrorism suspects in military commissions and others in federal court in the United States.

However, the military trials have been on hold since Obama announced his plan to close the prison by January and he faces a Thursday deadline to ask for another delay. About 10 cases are pending before military judges.

The deadline comes as Congress weighs legislation to overhaul the military commissions, including Obama's request to bar statements made under harsh interrogation and make it more difficult to use hearsay evidence.

Binalshibh has been charged with being a go-between for senior al Qaeda leaders and the September 11 hijackers.

His defense attorneys, in a filing with the appeals court, accuse the government of blocking their attempts to determine if Binalshibh is mentally fit to defend himself at trial. They said the government already has conceded that he suffers from a psychotic disorder.

A Justice Department spokesman said the agency was reviewing the motion.

Binalshibh was caught in Pakistan in September 2002 and held by the Central Intelligence Agency for four years before being handed over to the Defense Department and sent to the Guantanamo prison.

Several captives facing charges at Guantanamo have challenged the legitimacy of the special tribunals, which were set up to try non-U.S. citizens on terrorism charges outside the regular civilian and military courts. Many have refused in varying ways to participate.

(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky, editing by Bill Trott)