A divided federal appellate court panel canceled plea deals for three defendants who are accused to plotting the 9/11 terrorist attacks that killed 2,976 in 2001.

The court found that Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III had the authority to invalidate a contract reached between the accused mastermind and a Pentagon official.

The court ruled 2-1 against allowing Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two co-defendants to plead guilty under agreements that would have spared them the death penalty.