Turkish terror trial adjourned

A Turkish court today adjourned until September the trial of 69 people suspected of involvement in suicide attacks last year in Istanbul blamed on al-Qaida.

The proceedings opened earlier this month but the court was unable to hear testimony on the case until this week because of recent legal reforms.

The tribunal adjourned the high-profile trial until September 13 – after a summer recess. It also turned down requests of 15 suspects for acquittal.

The court agreed to begin hearing evidence on Wednesday after President Ahmet Necdet Sezer approved a law that gave a new mandate to the court.

Sixty-one people, including British Consul-General Roger Short, were killed and more than 600 others injured in the November attacks on two synagogues, the British Consulate and the local headquarters of the London-based HSBC bank.