American hikers plead not guilty to Iranian spy charges - Telegraph.co.uk

Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal were arrested on July 31, 2009 near Iran's border with Iraq, along with a third American, Sarah Shourd.

The trio, in their late 20s and early 30s, say they were hiking in the mountains of northern Iraq and, if they crossed the unmarked border into Iran, it was by mistake. Under Iranian law, espionage can carry the death penalty.

State-run English language Press TV said the two men had appeared in court but that Ms Shourd, who had been summoned, did not.

All three pleaded not guilty of espionage and illegal entry.

No date has been set for the trial to resume. The proceedings were closed to the public and press.

Later on Sunday, Press TV showed short footage of the two men in the courtroom, looking gaunt and worried.

They appeared to be giving details of their travels in the Middle East.

"I have been in Iraq and Kurdistan as a tourist with my fiancé Sarah, Josh and our friend Sean," Mr Bauer said.

The affair has compounded tension between Tehran and Washington, which have had no diplomatic relations since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the subsequent storming of the US embassy by revolutionary students.

A trial date set for last November was postponed at the last minute due to the absence of Ms Shourd, who has met President Barack Obama and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the United States since her release.

Press TV quoted the Tehran prosecutor's office as saying "it has 'compelling evidence' that three were co-operating with US intelligence agencies".

The defence lawyer, who was barred from seeing his clients for four months before the day of their trial, said he was confident the spying charge would be shown to be baseless and even charges of illegal entry into Iran could be beaten.

"I have studied all the details and I am sure that my clients are not guilty and the espionage charge does not have any substance," Masoud Shafii said.

"Even if the illegal entry happened, due to the fact that the border is not signposted and they could not have recognised it; even if it did happen, they are not at fault," he said.

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Iranian leader links risings in North Africa to Iran's revolution - CNN International

Iran's revolution in '79 toppled the shahSupreme leader calls Mubarak a Zionist "lackey"Ben Ali had been dependent on United States, Khamenei said

Tehran, Iran (CNN) -- Iran's supreme leader praised the uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia Friday and said they echo his country's revolution more than three decades ago, state media reported.

"Today, developments in North Africa, (including) Egypt, Tunisia and some other countries have a special meaning for the Iranian nation," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said during a Friday prayer sermon, according to Press TV.

"This is what was always referred to as the Islamic awakening created by the victory of the great revolution of the Iranian nation."

Iran's revolution in 1979 toppled the shah of Iran and ushered in an Islamic republic.

But the ferment in North Africa has been fueled by secular concerns.

Protests against corruption and poor living conditions in Tunisia forced the ouster of the country's president. Demonstrations in Egypt have called for the departure of President Hosni Mubarak.

Khamenei said Tunisia's former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali had been dependent on the United States and the Central Intelligence Agency.

He called the Mubarak regime, which has diplomatic relations with Israel, a "lackey of the Zionist regime."

He referred to Egyptians' fight for "dignity and honor" and said that Mubarak's biggest transgression was to make Egypt an American tool.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has been adversaries with Israel and the United States since the Iranian revolution occurred.

Khamenei said Iran's enemies have been launching a psychological war against it for the past 32 years, and he said the country's enemies have been trying to undermine the Islamic revolution since the 2009 presidential election.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won a second term in what was regarded by many Iranians as a rigged election. That poll that stoked popular protests in Iran.

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