WASHINGTON - US Attorney General Eric Holder on Monday said Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, and four others will be referred to Pentagon for trials in military tribunals, reversing a prior policy to try them in civilian court.

Holder told a Washington press conference that the administration changed its policy because the Congress has tied its hands to try the suspects in New York, and repealing the Congress' restrictions would take too long and delay justice.

He said the administration still aims to close the Guantanamo prison facility despite the policy about-face, promising to prosecute other terror suspects in civilian courts. He said federal courts are still the best place to try those suspects.