The French national Zacarias Moussaoui who faces the death penalty for his alleged involvement in the September 11 attacks, has dismissed his lawyers and said he prayed for the destruction of the United States.
"These lawyers are not any more my lawyers," he stated in English as he was brought before the US District Court in Alexandria, Virginia.
"I pray for the destruction of the United States of America," he added.
Moussaoui is the first person to be charged in the United States in connection with the multiple suicide attacks that killed some 3,000 people in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania.
Investigators believe Moussaoui was the missing 20th hijacker in those attacks.
The 33-year-old Frenchman has been charged with six counts of conspiracy, including conspiracy to destroy aircraft, use weapons of mass destruction and murder US employees. His trial is to open October 14 in Alexandria.
Last week, his lawyers had asked for improved conditions in the jail where Moussaoui is being held, including access to computer equipment so he can prepare for his upcoming trial.
The attorneys said Moussaoui was being held under "overly restrictive and oppressive" conditions which "create an insurmountable impediment" to him.
AFP