Manama: A Bahraini court has postponed to May 29 the re-trial of 13 people charged with plotting to topple the regime.

The Court of Appeals heard testimonies and will hear other statements next week.

On May 8, the court insisted that Abdul Hadi Al Khawaja and Mirza Al Mahroos, who were confined to a hospital, would have to be present at Tuesday’s trial.

Medical care

The court said that the two defendants would be given full medical care during their appearance in court.

The re-trial by the Supreme Court was decided by the Court of Cassation in the high-profile case against 21 defendants, seven of whom are being tried in absentia.

The Court of Cassation on April 30 allowed Al Horr Al Sameekh to go home after the National Safety Court of First Instance reduced his prison term from two years to six months.

Terror charges

The 13 defendants who are currently under detention and the seven others who were tried in absentia were convicted on charges of establishing and managing terror groups out to topple the royal regime by force and to change the constitution, communicating intelligence information with an overseas terrorist organisation as well as a number of other charges.

The National Safety Court of First Instance in June sentenced Abdul Wahab Hussain Ali Ahmad, Hassan Ali Mushaima, Abdul Hadi Abdullah Al Khawaja, Abdul Jalil Abdullah Al Singace, Mohammad Habib Al Saffaf (Al Miqdad), Saeed Mirza Ahmad, Abdul Jalil Radhi Makki and the London-based Saeed Abdul Nabi Al Shehabi to life imprisonmentThe court also sentenced ten defendants to 15 years in prison. Two defendants were sentenced to serve five years in jail, while one was sentenced to two years in jail.

Verdict challenged

The verdict was challenged by the lawyers, but the National Safety Court of Appeal in September confirmed the convictions and upheld the decision.

The case gained international dimensions after Al Khawaja, who is also a Danish national, started a hunger strike in February and was subsequently taken out of prison and moved to a public security clinic then to the military hospital, prompting the Danish foreign ministry to bring up his case