9 May 2011 - 19:30

Iranian Judiciary Spokesman Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei says the three Americans facing charges of illegal entry into Iran and espionage will stand trial this week.

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Mohseni-Ejei said the trial would be held as scheduled on May 11 unless the trio's lawyer Masoud Shafi'I requests the session to be adjourned and his request is accepted by the court.

Asked whether Shourd planned to forfeit her bail and not appear in court on the day of her trial, Mohseni-Ejei said it was up to the judge to decide whether to try the 32-year-old in absentia.

Shourd was released on bail of USD 500,000 in September 2010. Tehran Prosecutor Abbas Jafari-Dolatabadi said at the time that the decision was made "because of the detainee's health condition."

According to the suspected spies' attorney, she has not responded to a court summons to return and stand trial.

Shane Michael Bauer, Joshua Felix Fattal, both 28, and Sarah Emily Shourd were arrested on July 31, 2009, after they trespassed the Iranian border from Iraq's Kurdistan region.

Prosecutor Jafari-Dolatabadi later pressed espionage charges against the three, saying he had found "compelling evidence" that the three had been cooperating with US intelligence agencies.

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