The judiciary spokesman for Iran on Monday announced that the trial of three American hikers accused of spying is being postponed, the Associated Press and BBC reported. In July 2009, Shane Bauer, his fiancée Sarah Shourd, and their friend Josh Fattal were arrested by Iranian soldiers after accidently crossing the border into Northern Iraq while hiking.
For health reasons, Shourd was released on $500,000 bail in September and has returned to the United States. In a Sunday interview with the New York Times, she said that the three accidentally crossed from Iraq into Iran only because a border guard motioned to them to approach. “We did not actually enter Iran until he gestured to us. We were confused and worried and wanted to go back.”
Spokesman Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi said the court postponed the trial because Shourd has not yet been legally summoned to return to Iran so that all three can stand trial together. Shroud has not said she will return to Iran.
Shane Bauer, one of the two hikers still imprisoned, is a freelance journalist and photographer who has covered stories in Darfur, Iraq, and other areas of the Middle East. His works can be viewed at www.shanebauer.net.
For health reasons, Shourd was released on $500,000 bail in September and has returned to the United States. In a Sunday interview with the New York Times, she said that the three accidentally crossed from Iraq into Iran only because a border guard motioned to them to approach. “We did not actually enter Iran until he gestured to us. We were confused and worried and wanted to go back.”
Spokesman Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi said the court postponed the trial because Shourd has not yet been legally summoned to return to Iran so that all three can stand trial together. Shroud has not said she will return to Iran.
Shane Bauer, one of the two hikers still imprisoned, is a freelance journalist and photographer who has covered stories in Darfur, Iraq, and other areas of the Middle East. His works can be viewed at www.shanebauer.net.
