A court in the United States has rejected a bid by Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in connection with the attacks of 11 September 2001, to overturn his guilty plea.

The ruling means the Frenchman, also known as the 20th hijacker, will have to serve out his life sentence at a federal maximum security prison in Colorado. Mr Moussaoui had argued that his guilty plea was invalid because the US government failed to turn over classified evidence that would have helped his defence.

Zacarias Moussaoui (Photo: ANP/EPA)