GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA – A military commission trying the planners of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States for war crimes kicked off a series of hearings this week on motions filed by lawyers for the self-proclaimed 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other defendants.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his four co-defendants appeared in court Tuesday morning to face conspiracy charges related to the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon that killed nearly 3,000 Americans.