TEHRAN, Nov. 21 (UPI) -- An Iranian court has postponed a hearing for two American hikers held on espionage charges, their lawyer said Sunday.
Attorney Massoud Shafii told the Los Angeles Times that the hearing for Shane Bauer and Joshua Fattal, originally scheduled for this month, had been moved to Jan. 26 with no reason given.
Shafii said he was disappointed by the order from the Revolutionary Court judge and had been prepared to mount a defense of the two 28-year-olds who have been locked up for nearly 16 months since being arrested near the Iraqi border.
"Each single day added to my clients' detention is a burden on my conscience and mind," Shafii told the Times by telephone.
Iran says Fattal, Bauer and Bauer's fiancee, Sarah Shourd, crossed into Iran illegally and charged them with espionage amid the tensions over Iran's nuclear program. Shourd was released on bail in September and returned to the United States.
