Ahead of 9/11 anniversary, Gitmo photos of mastermind Khalid Sheikh on the web

The first photographs of the self-proclaimed 9/11 mastermind at Guantanamo Bay have cropped up on the Internet, and experts say the images of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed are being used by terrorist groups to inspire attacks against the United States.

The photographs, taken in July by the Red Cross at the Guantanamo detention centre in Cuba, show Mohammed in a white robe, a red-patterned headdress and a long salt-and-pepper beard.

They are the first known images of Mohammed since shot taken upon his capture in Pakistan in March 2003 showing him in a white T-shirt, with disheveled hair and a moustache. Since then, only courtroom sketches from his trial have been available.

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Underlining ‘moral high ground,’ Obama signs Gitmo shutdown

Saying that “our ideals give us the strength and moral high ground” to combat terrorism, US President Barack Obama today signed executive orders effectively ending the Central Intelligence Agency’s secret interrogation program, directing the closing of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp within a year and setting up a sweeping, high-level review of the best way to hold and question terrorist suspects in the future.

The prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba — where prisoners have been detained for years without charge, some subjected to interrogation that human rights groups say amounted to torture — had damaged America’s moral standing in the world.

“We intend to win this fight,” Obama said, “We are going to win it on our own terms.”

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