Nigerian court adjourns Iranian arms trial

AFP, A Nigerian court on Friday adjourned the trial of an alleged Iranian Revolutionary Guard member charged over a weapons shipment sent from Iran and seized in Lagos in October.

The trial, which began on Wednesday, was suspended to March 7 to enable the court to hear a bail application filed by Azim Aghajani and Nigerian suspect Ali Abbas Jega.

The accused have pleaded not guilty to three charges of importing 13 containers of weapons and falsely declaring them as building materials.

The arms shipment has drawn international attention because it could constitute a violation of UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme. It has also sparked diplomatic tensions between West African nations and Iran.

Aghajani's lawyer, Chris Uche, has said the arms shipment was a "normal business transaction" between Iran and Gambia, which Tehran says was the final destination for the weapons.

Gambia has denied it was the intended recipient of the weapons and has cut diplomatic ties with Iran over the dispute. Senegal has expressed concern that the arms could end up in the hands of separatist rebels in its south.

Uche told the court on Friday that lawyers were not being given free access to the Iranian.

"My client has also appeared in the same clothing in the past three days," he said. Before Friday's session, Aghajani was heard informing a security official in the courtroom that he had a cough and needed medication.