Iran Will Put 3 US Hikers on Trial

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.

Relatives and the US government have described Shane Bauer, Sarah Shourd, and Josh Fattal as innocent tourists on an adventure hike, and say their crossing into Iran July 31 was accidental.
(More Shane Bauer stories.)