Trial for Hikers Detained in Iran Set for February
Nov. 21, 2010— -- The two American hikers who have been detained in Iran for 478 days, along with the recently released detainee, will now stand trial in Iran on Feb. 6, 2011, according to their attorney.
Shane Bauer, Josh Fattal and Sarah Shourd's trial was originally slated for Nov. 6 of this year, but authorities said it was delayed because Shourd, who was arrested with them and later freed on bail and returned to the United States due to health concerns, had not been summoned to return to the country to appear in court.
Masoud Shafiei, the attorney for Bauer and Fattal, told The Associated Press he received an official notification today of the new trial date.
Shafiei said the judge in the case has refused to allow him to meet with Bauer and Fattal -- both 28 -- to prepare for the trial.
"He replied, 'You will meet them on the day of the trial,'" Shafiei told the AP. "I need to meet them to prepare my defense letter."
Bauer, Fattal and Shourd were detained in late July 2009 after crossing an unmarked border while hiking in northern Iraq. Shourd has said they were hiking in a scenic and relatively peaceful part of northern Iraq, and inadvertently crossed an unmarked border with Iran when they were arrested.
Shourd, who is Bauer's fiancée, was released Sept. 14 on $500,000 bail as a humanitarian gesture and because of unspecified health concerns -- though the woman has since said her health is fine.
An Omani delegation, which had worked behind the scenes for months to win her release, traveled to Tehran to bring her back.
The U.S. State Department has confirmed since then that an Omani delegation has returned to Tehran to seek the release of Bauer and Fattal.
Iran has warned that it will seize the $500,000 bail posted by Shourd if she does not return for trial.
The two remaining hikers have now been detained in Iran over a month longer than the Americans held during the hostage crisis in 1979-1981, which lasted 444 days. In a statement last month, their mothers again called for their release.
