SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The self-professed mastermind and four other men charged in the Sept. 11 attacks declared they are "terrorists to the bone" in a statement that mocked the U.S. failure to prevent the killings and predicted America will fall like "the towers on the blessed 9/11 day."
In a rambling response to the government's case, the men also sought to justify the attacks, citing a violent interpretation of Islam and a series of grievances against the U.S., including support for Israel, the Iraq war and abuses at Abu Ghraib prison and in Guantanamo.
"To us, they are not accusations. To us they are badges of honor, which we carry with pride," the men wrote in the six-page document, which was released Tuesday by a military judge over the objections of the Pentagon-appointed lawyers for two of the men.
"So, you are the first class war criminals," they added, "and the whole world witnesses this."
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The five, who are among 245 prisoners held at the U.S. military lockup in Cuba, include Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the professed architect of the Sept. 11 attacks, and Ramzi Binalshibh, allegedly one of his key lieutenants in al-Qaida.
Both men previously said they were proud of their role in the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon — and all five had said they wanted to plead guilty. But this is their most detailed statement to date.
The men do not go into details of their roles in the plot, but they call the charge of conspiracy "laughable" and mock U.S. authorities for being unable to prevent the attacks. "Blame yourselves and your failed intelligence apparatus."