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US Hikers' Lawyer: We'll Appeal

Hillary Clinton calls for their immediate release

By Polly Davis Doig, Newser Staff

Posted Aug 21, 2011 9:26 AM CDT

(Newser) – Iran is attracting some attention after it sentenced American hikers Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal to eight years in prison yesterday. The duo's lawyer is vowing an appeal, saying, "I will use entire legal capacity to defend them." He has 20 days to do so, and the AP notes that sentences in such cases are often reduced significantly on appeal. The case of Sarah Shourd, the third hiker detained who was released on bail last year, "is still open and will be tried in absentia," says the chief prosecutor.

Enough is enough, says Hillary Clinton, saying that she's "deeply disappointed" by the sentences. The secretary of state called for Bauer and Fattal's immediate release, adding that "it is time for them to return home and be reunited with their families." It's worth noting that Iran's foreign minister earlier this month said he hoped the hikers' trial would "lead to their freedom"—an indication of a split between Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's administration and hardline judges.

FILE - In this Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011 file photo, US hikers Shane Bauer, left, and Josh Fattal, attend their trail at the Tehran Revolutionary Court, Iran. The website of Iran's state TV reported Saturday,... (Anonymous)

In this Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011 file photo, Shane Bauer, sits, in a court room at the Tehran Revolutionary Court, Iran. (Anonymous)

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 26 comments

flameforjustice

Aug 22, 2011 2:26 PM CDT

How do we know they aren't spies? The goverment(behind the scenes covert operations)often recruits young people for these missions. Either way that's the chance you take in traveling to parts of the globe where US citizens are disliked. Luck is on their side they could have just"disappeared".

Boba-jef

Aug 21, 2011 4:02 PM CDT

http://www.uncoverage.net/2011/08/the-american-hikers-arrested-on-iraniraq-border-as-spies-what-really-happened/#more-76103 - The American “Hikers” Arrested on Iran/Iraq Border as Spies: What Really Happened? http://www.akpress.org/2009/items/suffledhowitgushakpress - Suffled How it Gush: A North American Anarchist in the Balkans by Shon Meckfessel http://www.komonews.com/news/local/52270842.html ~ about Shon Meckfessel http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=05fd43739c3af58af94000fd7909eb45 ~ Meckfessel's version.

Boba-jef

Aug 21, 2011 12:56 PM CDT

I wonder what the sentence would be for three 'Activist', Muslim, Journalists who went "hiking" in the foothills near Juarez, MX and accidentally crossed the Rio Grande in to the U.S.?

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Iran • Hillary Clinton • hikers • Shane Bauer • Sarah Shourd • Josh Fattal • hikers Iran • hikers Iran trial

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Iran: 2 Hikers Will Face Trial

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(NEWSER) - After more than a year in an Iranian prison, American hikers Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal are headed to trial, says Iran's intelligence minister. "The two Americans will be tried," Heidar Moslehi said. "We will hand any evidence we have to the judiciary." Hillary Clinton confirmed that she'd been told of a Nov. 6 trial date, but still hoped for the hikers' release, reports Reuters. More»

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(AP) - The lawyer for two Americans jailed in Iran on charges of espionage says his clients could be released after a court hearing slated for tomorrow. Masoud Shafiei said today the fact that the session in the trial of Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal would coincide with the second anniversary of their arrest may indicate that they will be freed. There also is a tradition in the Muslim world of pardoning prisoners for the holy month of Ramadan, which starts early next week. More»

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(NEWSER) - Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer have an intriguing ally in their corner: Muhammad Ali. The Greatest quietly sent a letter to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last month asking him to release the captive American hikers, and now he's going public with it. "Please show the world the compassion I know you have in your heart," Ali wrote, in a letter he handed the AP yesterday. He addressed Khamenei as "dear brother," and praised him for showing compassion to released hiker Sarah Shourd. Ali previously wrote Khamenei just before her release last year. More»

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(NEWSER) - An Iranian court today began the closed-door trial of the three American hikers it accuses of espionage, reports the AP, in spite of repeated pleas for leniency from the hikers' families and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad alike. Iran last week demanded the return of Sarah Shourd, currently free on bail, but the trial goes forward with only Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer in custody in Tehran. More»

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(NEWSER) - Iran will try the three Americans hikers who were arrested in July after they crossed the border from northern Iraq, the Iranian foreign minister said today. Charges were unspecified, though they have previously been accused of spying. "They have entered Iran with suspicious aims. The judiciary will try them," he told a news conference, adding that "relevant sentences" would be issued. No date was set for a possible trial, Reuters reports. More»

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US Hikers' Lawyer: We'll Appeal

Hillary Clinton calls for their immediate release

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