U.S. trial for London al Qaeda case delayed

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The New York trial of a young American who was the first person extradited to the United States from Britain on terrorism charges has been delayed until January, a clerk for the trial judge said on Wednesday.
Syed Fahad Hashmi, 29, has pleaded not guilty to charges of supporting al Qaeda, which include accusations he kept ponchos, raincoats and waterproof socks in his London apartment for a friend knowing they would be passed on for use by al Qaeda fighters in Afghanistan.
The trial was due to begin next week, but was delayed until January 6 after a hearing closed to the public was held on Tuesday. Some portions of the pre-trial hearings have been held behind closed doors after U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska ruled some of the evidence was classified.
Hashmi, a Muslim who moved to United States from Pakistan at age 3, was arrested by British authorities in June 2006 at London’s Heathrow airport after he had been studying and received a master’s degree in international relations at London Metropolitan University.
He has been held in solitary confinement for the past two and a half years while awaiting trial. If convicted of all counts, he faces a maximum sentence of up to 70 years in prison.
(Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Michelle Nichols and Sandra Maler)