Pearl Murder Trial On Hold

With two prosecution witnesses en route Monday from the United States, a judge ordered testimony in the trial of Muslim militants charged in the kidnap slaying of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl to resume on Wednesday.

The trial was set to resume Monday after the Supreme Court in the morning denied a defense request for a stay pending a hearing on its petition to move the trial from Hyderabad back to Karachi, where Pearl disappeared Jan. 23.

The high court set the hearing for Thursday, but said prosecutors could continue calling witnesses in the meantime.

But an hour later, the trial judge adjourned the case until Wednesday because the lawyer for three of four defendants, Rai Bashir, could not make it back from Islamabad, the capital, where he had argued before the high court, another defense lawyer said.

Judge Ali Ashraf Shah, noting that it was Bashir's second absence, also appointed backup lawyers for the three defendants to prevent further delays, lawyers said amid extremely tight security outside the Hyderabad Central Jail, where the trial is being held behind closed doors.

Chief prosecutor Raja Quereshi accused the defense of using delaying tactics.

"The court has appointed state lawyers, so we hope that no further adjournment will take place," he told reporters after the half-hour session. He said he had been prepared to call two witnesses, but did not identify them.

The trial began April 22 in Karachi but was suspended after only three days of testimony. The four defendants have pleaded innocent to charges of murder, kidnapping and terrorism. They face the death penalty if convicted.